The Legend of Zelda: The Sister
by The Tacochickenwings
Summary: Threequel to the Wind Waker, sequel to Hidden Fire! Link, Tetra, and Bambi journey to a hidden kingdom called Oceana to find out the secrets of their bloodlines and save the world from doom at the hands of the greatest evil yet: a man named Majora...
1. Ciara's Gift

_**HERE IT IS AT LONG LAST! THE SEQUEL TO HIDDEN FIRE!**_

**_Listen...Link, Tetra, and Bambi don't come in until chapter 3. Chapter 2 talks about the princess of Oceana. Hopefully, this will all make sense to you. If it doesen't, it will be chapter 3._**

**_So whatcha waitin' for? Read and review!_**

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**And now, I present to you:**

_The Legend of Zelda: The Sister_

_Started on 11/13/05_

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_**Chapter 1 -- Ciara's Gift**_

The young woman waited impatiently as she sat in her armchair, staring out the rain splattered window.

_Damn that dirty bag of shit... Where is he! He promised his return, what, like, two hours ago? Parents...they can never keep their promises... _she thought bitterly.

This young lady you are reading about at this moment was about 16 years old, with dark tanned skin, and bright green eyes. Her red hair was pinned in two buns atop her head. She was garbed most unusually in a green, gypsy like outfit, one known to be the uniform of an ancient tribe known as the Gerudos.

The Gerudos -- the girl prided herself as one of their descendants that actually looked to be one... She could think of a number of people who didn't respect their blood-line.

People like Bambi.

The girl didn't generally take the time to wonder about a bitch like that. She and Bambi had sort of grown up together on Windfall Island (which is where the girl was at the present), yet they had completely different lifestyles. Bambi was a poor peasant girl, while she was a rich noble girl whose father owned the deed to Windfall. But Bambi had disappeared from Windfall months ago after some strange incident involving her boyfriend Vaati, who had gone missing even before her. The young lady had a number of theories about this, as Bambi had acted strange after his disappearance, but decided against really thinking about them. It didn't matter -- she had never liked Bambi.

She had heard from other Windfall residents that Bambi had returned to Windfall looking quite normal, only to leave again with some friends of her's to join a pirate crew.

The girl guessed that wherever she was, Bambi was still the overly-optimistic, naive little airhead that she had known nearly her whole life.

The young lady jumped to her feet with mingled impatience and excitement as the door of her house swung open, and in stepped a tall, muscular man who shared her eyes, skin tone, and hair color. He removed his soaking wet cloak and hung it on a peg near the door.

Stamping her foot, the girl snapped, "What took you so long, daddy? You're two hours late! I don't have that kind of patience, as you well know!"

Holding a package, the man strode over to his daughter and gave her a kiss on the forhead.

"I know, I apologize, my dear Ciara. But please understand -- this thing you wanted me to get for you... It's like, THE rarest artifact or something. Most of the servants died trying to get it, but finally, we did. Here." Ciara's father handed her the package.

With a happy squeal, Ciara opened up the gift. A soft "oh" of amazement escaped her lips as she gently picked up an elaborate mask.

It was a spooky mask. Evil seemed to seep from it, but to Ciara, it was simply wonderful. It was heart shaped, and had large yellow spikes on its edges. The mask ahad intricate patterns all over it, but the center focus was the eyes. They were huge and round, with orange whites, and small lime-green irises dotted with tiny black pupils. One could get lost in those eyes...

"The Majora's Mask..." Ciara uttered.

"Indeed."

"This is awesome!"

"I'm glad you like it, love."

"Yes, daddy, I love it. I would also really love another pony, so go get me one."

Ciara's father sighed.

"Of course, my dear. But I have just returned. Let me rest and grab something to eat first, ok?"

Ciara frowned.

"Ok, daddy. You have five hours. Hurry up!" she barked before turning and scampering up the stairs.

Once in her bedroom, Ciara quietly shut the door and set Majora's Mask on her desk. Reaching to her bookshelf, she pulled out a black, unmarked book with a leather cover, and thumbed through its moldy pages.

"This is wonderful...the perfect experiment... Time to see if this'll actually work... Aha -- here's the page..."

Ciara began to mumble a chant while waving a slender-fingered hand over the mask. The artifact began to glow, much to her glee.

After a long period of concentrated spell-casting, blinding purple light filled the room, the source of it being the Majora's Mask. Ciara screamed, stepped back, and shut her eyes. After a moment, the light died down, and Ciara opened her eyes slowly. She gasped.

Standing before her stood a tall, incredibly handsome man with long, silky black hair, fair skin, and beautifully shaped purple eyes. He was dressed in black pants, black boots, and a long sleeved, tight black shirt with a bit of silver armor on the chest. He also had a cape and gloves. Tch...guess the color. The mask was gone -- apparently, this man _was _the mask...

"It worked! It worked! I got my very own servant (besides my father)!" Ciara cheered.

The mask man blinked his pretty purple eyes.

"'Servant'? _Excuse _me?" he said.

"Well, yeah! I created you to serve me so I can take over the world!"

The man frowned and crossed his arms. He raised a brow.

"You want to use me to take over the world, do you?"

"Yes!"

He chuckled.

"I don't think so. I will be the one ruling the world, you see."

"Er...what?"

Suddenly, the door burst open, and in stepped Ciara's father.

"Ciara, what happened! What --" He suddenly caught sight of the man standing in his daughter's bedroom.

"WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THIS? YOU AREN'T SUPPOSED TO HAVE BOYS IN YOUR BEDROOM, CIARA! DO YOU WANT TO GET PREGNANT! DO YOU WANT TO GET --"

Those were her father's last words. The now human Majora's Mask had lazily raised his hand and struck the other man dead with a simple dark energy ball.

Ciara raised a hand to her mouth and gasped, her green eyes wide.

Her father's killer chuckled coldly.

"Call me Majora... And Majora is allowed to go into any girl's bedroom he pleases. I'll do whatever I want, thank you very much, and there is quite a lot I want to do..."

"You killed my father! He...he was supposed to get me a pony!" Ciara stuttered.

Majora did not seem to have heard that comment. Turning to the 16 year old, he said, "I have much to thank you for, my dearest Ciara."

Striding over to her, Majora wrapped an arm around her shoulders and smiled warmly (maybe even seductively) at her.

"And I'm going to repay you. Oh, I will repay you well, little jewel..."

Ciara blushed.

"Are you implying that we should have se --"

Majora cut her off. "So listen... I'm going to start an army. An army for people like us, and trust me, there are many I have in mind. How would you like to join? There's a most high position awaiting you..."

Ciara blinked. They weren't going to have sex after all.

"Well, I don't know..." she said thoughtfully.

"I'll be your best friiiieeeend..." Majora offered.

"Hmmmmm..."

"I'll get you that pony."

Ciara grinned and shook his hand.

"You have a deal!"

"Excellent. Now pack your things -- we're out of here."

Ciara stepped into the dinky little sail boat, squinting her eyes against the fierce storm winds. She placed her luggage on the floor of the boat.

Majora, who was already in and getting ready to sail, said, "Gee, could you pack any heavier?"

"Why are we _sailing_ to, er...wherever it is we're going? You have powers -- can't we teleport or something?" Ciara asked, sitting down.

"Patience, young lady... I've just been turned human, some of my powers are still developing. And besides -- I couldn't teleport anyway."

Ciara shook her head as the boat left the dock, wrapping her arms around herself for warmth. It was frigid and rainy.

"Majora? Where are we going anyway?"

"We're going to the secret kingdom of Oceana to start my quest for the Light Force."

"I've heard about the Light Force... But why not just go for the Triforce?"

"The Light Force can be just as powerful as the Triforce is if used skillfully. Besides, the Light Force hasn't gotten enough attention. _Everyone's _after the Triforce, and I like to be original."

There was silence for a moment.

"And this 'Oceana'...I've never heard of it before," Ciara finally said.

"Duh! It's a _secret _kingdom, remember?" Majora replied.

"Anyway," he said, "way back, hundreds of years ago, the land of Hyrule was sealed beneath the surface of the ocean. People tried to keep things the same and orderly once they started their new lives as island-dwellers, but it just didn't work out. Everyone was too far apart, and feuding arose, mainly about religion. Some people remained faithful to the legend of the Hero of Time, while others believed that since he did not save Hyrule from being drowned, that he was a foolish traitor. These people began to put their faith instead in the legends of the Four Sword and the Picori. I'm sure you've heard of these. At last, things grew so bad between the halves that they split. Those who worshipped the legend of the Hero of Time remained on the Great Sea. They are _your_ ancestors. The people whose religion was of the Four Sword grouped together, and lead by a single man, hid themselves from the rest of the world and started their own kingdom called Oceana. They hid it cleverly, and nothing has been heard from them. Well, sort of...

A direct descendant of the Hyrule royal family, a pirate queen by the name of Sylvia, came across Oceana accompanied by her crew. This happened not so long ago -- about twelve years.

Anyway, the pirates' visit with the kingdom was brief. It was discovered by the Oceanans that Sylvia had slept with their prince. The people grew angry, and tried to murder the pirates, but they managed to escape. The Oceanans didn't dare leave their kingdom, so the crew was not followed.

As it turns out, Sylvia got pregnant off of her little fling with the prince. She gave birth to twin girls. Sylvia returned to Oceana completely alone, aside from the babies, who were merely infants at the time. I'm guessing she thought it best to let the prince know he was a father.

Naturally, the prince was shocked. Then he demanded to keep one of the girls as his heir. Heartbroken over it, Sylvia said good-bye to the girl she was giving to the prince, and left with the remaining child.

The prince kept good to his word, and the daughter he kept has been raised as princess of Oceana. The other girl was raised as a pirate by her mother. Then, when the twins were five, Sylvia was murdered."

"Wow... How do you know all this?" Ciara asked.

"After my...um...defeat, I was sent to the depths of Hyrule, where I could do nothing but observe the happenings of the world above using my all-seeing eyes. I may have been a mask, but I was alive."

"Your defeat? What do you mean?"

Majora looked angry.

"That's none of your business," he snapped.

Ciara hastily backed off the subject and switched to a different one.

"Why are we going to Oceana to carry out your plan? What are you planning to do, anyway?"

"I've been planning this for years. You see, since Sylvia was part of Hyrule's royal family, so were her daughters. Each female in the royal family bloodline carries inside her the power of the Light Force. Since the two daughters were twins, the Light Force was split. Each girl has half of it, along with a whole list of other physcic powers.

We are going to Oceana to see one of the twins, the princess of that land. Her father, the prince in the story, is now king, and obviously, has power over all of Oceana. I will make certain that he lends me his daughter's hand in marriage. That way, I will get both a kingdom for my base and a clear shot at the first half of the Light Force."

"What about the other half?" Ciara asked.

"Well, you see, the princess of Oceana is no fool. She'll see right through me, I'm sure. She has the power of telepathy and prophetic dreams. Whether or not she is aware that she has a sister, I do not know, but in the end, she will find out. The pirate twin is something of a hero, and certainly her sister will call to her to request her aid. We'll seize the other girl, and all will be complete. All there is to do after that is to wait for the right day, the only day that the Light Force can be extracted," said Majora proudly.

"Well, that certainly is elaborate..." Ciara commented.

"Hehe...it is, isn't it?"

The trip continued in excited silence.


	2. The Princess' Plea

_**Here it is -- chapter 2. Yes, those are Dark Link and Shadow Link in the chapter. More will be explained about their "coming-to-be" later on. Next chapter goes to Link, Tetra, Bambi, and Aryll!**_

**_And for those who are confused with the maiden biz...here:_**

**_Green Maiden -- Lunatet_**

**_Blue Maiden -- Artet_**

**_Red Maiden -- Fiza_**

**_Purple Maiden -- Lazerus_**

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**_REVIEW_**

**_Note -- the beginning of the chapter starts out boring, but there are things I need to explain. Things get better later in the chapter._**

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_**Chapter 2 -- The Princess' Plea**_

"I can't stop having these dreams... They speak of the ancient prophecy, and my mother..." said the young Princess Pike, striding through the palace corridors with four women at her sides, who listening to what she had to say.

The princess was a pretty girl who was about twelve years old, nearly thirteen, with big brown eyes and dirty blonde hair that went a little past her shoulders. She was currently wearing a white sundress, white tights, and white low-heeled white shoes. On her head was a simple circlet with pink roses.

The four women accompanying her were quite unique looking. The first one was tall and slender with pale green eyes and light green hair worn in cinamon buns on each side of her head (Think Princess Leia from Star Wars). She was wearing a long gown the same color as her hair.

The next was a woman with deep blue eyes and straight, dark blue hair that went to the middle of her back. She too wore a gown, only hers was in blue.

The third woman had blood red eyes with blood red hair cut to just beneath her chin, and was garbed in a red gown.

The final maiden appeared to be the youngest, looking only 16 or 17 years old. She had purple eyes and long, purple hair worn in braids, and, you guessed it -- purple gown.

"I take it that these dreams have meaning to you, am I wrong?" inquired the blue maiden.

The princess turned to her, looking solemn.

"Yes, Artet. Something big is going to happen...but...I don't know what. I've read the ancient prophecy over and over again, but I can't decipher this dream. And what does my mother have to do with it, I wonder?" she said.

"Perhaps she will return, and play some role in the fulfillment of the prophecy..." suggested the green maiden quietly.

"We don't even know if her mother is still alive, Lunatet, I doubt that she is," the red maiden snapped at the green one.

"Fiza, must you always be such a pessimist?" asked Artet, glaring at her red sister.

"I'm saying what I think! Is that such a crime?" Fiza replied defiantly.

"Please, don't fight!" Pike pleaded. "This is a serious matter...I can feel it."

"Sorry..." murmured Lunatet, Artet, and Fiza ('Fiza' is pronounced FEE-zuh).

After a moment of silence, Lunatet turned to the purple maiden, who walked in deep concentration.

"You haven't shared your thoughts with us, Lazerus."

Lazerus, the purple maiden, blinked herself out of her state and raised her head to look at her sisters and the princess.

"Truthfully, I don't know what to think. I'd wait for signs before making assumptions," she said.

"That is wise, little sister," Artet complimented with a nod.

Princess Pike looked at her four friends.

"And you four have felt nothing strange approaching?" she asked suddenly.

"Nothing, princess. Sorry," Fiza admitted. "Why do you ask?"

"You four are the remaining maidens of the monumental Four Sword Sanctuary after the deaths of the white and yellow maidens, Astasia and Brigette." Pike frowned and bowed her head before continuing somewhat mournfully, "I remember nothing of their deaths, being an infant at the time of their occurence, but to this day I feel your pain. They were your sisters. But on less emotional levels, lack of both white and yellow maiden has weakened all of our powers as guardians of the Four Sword. Perhaps this is why none of you have felt what I have during the past few nights."

The four maidens nodded silently, and a sad quietness followed as the five continued their palace walk.

Finally, with what appeared to be some reluctance, Princess Pike spoke again.

"My mother and the prophecy were not the only things in my dream..." she began. The maidens looked at her.

Pike said, "There was also something about a sister... But...I don't have a sister... Do I?"

The maidens suddenly looked scared and shared glances.

"What is it? What do you know?" Pike demanded.

Artet stopped walking, and everyone stopped with her.

"Tell me!" the princess begged.

"Your father will have our heads...this was not to be mentioned again, but...I don't suppose it can be avoided now, can it?" Artet said with a nervous smile. She then went into the story.

"A while ago, when your father was merely prince and your grandfather was king, some outsiders intruded in our lands. We sort of welcomed them, as hospitality is of our nature, but we remained wary of their presence. After all, they were pirates. Their leader's name was Sylvia, if I recall correctly...

Well, of course, the pirates met the royal family. I remember that your father Arnav and the pirate leader Sylvia did not get along very well. But, trying to be nice, your grandfather invited the pirates to a banquet anyway.

Arnav and Sylvia ended up having a little too much to drink that night, and uh...kind of slept together. When he came around, your father was very angry, and alerted his father, who felt pretty much the same way, and ordered your mother and her crew to be killed.

The pirates escaped, however... And then another part comes in. Our deceased sisters, Astasia and Brigette were, as we knew, always hungering for more. They were sick of the boundaries of our kingdom, and snuck onto the ship as it was leaving.

They disguised themselves to look like normal women, and had children of their own before their deaths... We had been able to talk to them through telepathy.

Anyway, back to Sylvia...well...turns out that your father sort of, uh...knocked her up. So she returned to Oceana one day with twin girls, one of which was you... She showed them to your father, and he decided to keep you as his heir. Your mother left with your sister...we've heard nothing of them since."

Pike's brown eyes were round.

"All this...and...and I never knew it? My father told me my mother was a whore, not a pirate! I thought I was an only child!" Tears streamed down her face.

"Sorry, but...you asked to hear the truth..." Fiza said.

Pike said nothing. She just gazed at the floor, looking confused.ass

"I know this is a lot to take in..." Lunatet said quietly.

"I...I..." Pike stuttered, but was cut off as an old, stout man bustled towards them.

"Princess Pike, your father would like a word with you," he said.

A muscle in Pike's face twitched. She wiped away her tears.

"Yes, thank you for letting me know, sir. I'll go see him now..."

Turning to the four maidens, the princess said emotionlessly, "Thank you for talking to me." She then left to meet with her father.

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"Ah, Pike, my darling daughter! You know how I don't like you wandering about the castle yourself! There could be bandits waiting outside the windows who might want to break in and put you in a big sack and tie it up so you can't breathe and then kidnap you and take you out of the sack and take off all your clothes and rape you and then kill you by stabbing you in the neck!" exclaimed King Arnav, rising from his thrown and striding to greet his daughter.

He was a tall, burly man with tan skin and long, curly blonde hair with an equally long and curly blonde beard. Arnav was dressed in a royally embroidered shirt and matching pants with a long, green cape and an a shining golden crown.

Pike's fists clenched.

"I was not alone. I was with the maidens," she snapped.

"Ah, yes, of course, but could they protect you from bandits?"

"Ye --"

"I thought not. Anyway, dearest daughter, I have grand news," said Arnav.

"Yes, well, I have some news for YOU! I just found out that --" Pike was cut off once more.

"You're getting married, Pike!"

Pike was stunned.

"W-what?"

"You're getting married, love! Isn't that great?"

"WHAT?"

"It's true. A messenger from a far away kingdom said that his king desired your hand in marriage. So I said yes," Arnav told his daughter.

"Father, how could you! Why didn't you consult me?" Pike choked out.

Arnav looked up. He had been examining his nails.

"Huh? Did you say something, sweetie?"

"This is MY life! Why did you make this decision without consulting ME?"

Arnav tossled his daughter's hair.

"Ah, my darling daughter, this is what's best for the kingdom. You'll grow to understand one day. Besides, I'm sure this king is a nice fellow who will take good care of you."

"Do you even know his name? Do you know what kingdom he rules?"

"Well, uh...no. But we shall find out tonight -- he's coming over for dinner."

Pike's anger bubbled over.

"NOW YOU TELL ME THIS? THIS IS THE LAST THING I NEED TO HEAR! I'VE JUST BEEN TOLD THE TRUTH ABOUT MY MOTHER!"

"What?"

"MY MOTHER WASN'T A PROSTITUTE LIKE YOU TOLD ME! SHE WAS A PIRATE, AND YOU ALMOST GOT HER KILLED! YOU KNOCKED HER UP, AND SHE GAVE BIRTH TO TWINS, ONE OF WHICH WAS ME! YOU NEVER TOLD ME I HAD A SISTER!"

"I, uh..."

"YOU NEVER TOLD ME!"

"YOUNG LADY, GO TO YOUR ROOM! YOU HAVE SPOKEN OUT OF TURN!"

Arnav turned to a pair of soldiers standing by the thrones.

"SOLDIERS! ESCORT THE PRINCESS TO HER BEDROOM SO SHE DOES NOT GET ATTACKED BY BANDITS AND THROWN INTO A SACK AND KIDNAPPED AND TAKEN OUT OF THE SACK AND HAVE HER CLOTHES TAKEN OFF AND GET RAPED AND STABBED IN THE NECK!"

The soldiers bowed, and began to lead the angry Pike to her chambers.

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Pike sighed as she sat on her bed, staring at the prophecy in an ancient book.

The prophecy was a legend in Oceana. It was the thing haunting Pike's dreams. No one knew who had written it, but it had been known by heart to all, and was said to be the directions for saving the world some day in the future. Not a soul could decipher it, however. It said:

_To smite the moonlight's lover_

_Thou must thwart those who are unpure_

_He who drains the night's day_

_The children of darkness will come forth_

_To lend aid to those true_

_To lay hand on the six tools of the gods_

_To help small girls find their way_

_Look for their red blood amongst the black_

_Seven heinous souls_

_One who reigns_

_Four who are weak-minded_

_And two who come forth to do what the gods see right_

_Spare the two_

_And leave all else to die_

_Unlock the door for he_

_Who is one, become four_

_Using time's key, save a boy and his lover_

_Then hurry to the church as the sky rains blood_

_Or else all will be gone for good_

Pike angrily shut the book. She didn't want to think about that fucking prophecy then. She was just so...pissed. I mean, an arranged marriage? Pike didn't even know the man! It was apparent that her father was totally out of his fucking mind... Pike sighed and walked over to her bedside table and picked up an ocarina, fingering it gently.

The ocarina was known as the Ocarina of Time, and had been a treasure of her family. It was said that it belonged to the Hero of Time himself.

Most people in her kingdom thought of it with distaste. Their belief was that the Hero of Time was a traitor and a fool. Yet, Pike could sense the purity of the object in her hands.

Suddenly, the princess of Oceana heard voices outside her door. The voices of some of the castle's guards...

"Did you hear? One of our most prized artifacts, the Dark Mirror, has gone missing!" hissed one guard.

"Like, oh my gosh, no way!" said the other.

"They haven't found the culprit yet. It's as though it just...vanished. However...there have been some strange noises coming from that spooky old manor. You know, the one a ways out from town?"

"Yeah, I know the one. But no one would dare go to that manor...too creepy. So screw looking there."

"Yeah, screw it. The king wants us to look for the Dark Mirror so it doesen't fall into the wrong hands, but...we can do that later. Want to go grab some chicken fingers at Burger King?" asked the first voice.

"Yeah, that'd be cool," replied the second.

The guards' footsteps could be heard walking away. Then the second voice said, "Wait! We don't have a Burger King! WHAT ARE YOU GETTING AT, ASSHOLE?"

Then the other person fired a gun, Pike could hear... The sound of a body hitting the floor floated past her door.

Pike shrugged and turned to go look out the window.

The Dark Mirror was missing? The Dark Mirror was as ancient as the Ocarina of Time... The mirror had many dark powers. There were loads of rumors as to what evils it could cause, but no one knew for sure... The mirror had been safely kept by the royal family of Oceana...until now.

Then the guard said that there was some activity in the spooky, abandoned old mansion far out from town...

No one knew the mansion's origins. It had been there since Oceana's beginnings, and no one knew who owned it, or if it had ever even been inhabited. But nobody dared enter that mansion. It was said to be very haunted, so activity inside it was indeed very strange. Pike couldn't help but feel that the Dark Mirror case had something to do with the mansion at the present...

All these thoughts were overwhelming at the moment, so Pike reached under her bed and pulled out a Persian Shamshir (It's a type of sword, for those who don't know. Look it up on Google -- they're really cool). The princess was skilled in the ways of the sword, unbeknownst to her dumbfuck father.

He had said, "Swords will poke your eyes out and we'll have to put you on a horse and take you to a hospital where they might not be able to put your eyes back in!" Of course, Pike hadn't listened. She had been practicing her sword skills since she was six, and she still had both eyes intact.

Shamishir in hand, Pike opened her bedroom window. Below it was a courtyard, which Pike climbed down into with the aid of some vines growing outside the window. Pike began to practice the shamishir, but even that couldn't take her mind off everything.

Pike placed her thoughts about the mansion, Dark Mirror, and marriage aside to focus on her discoveries about her family.

A sister...she had a sister all this time. Why didn't her father want her to know? He had made everyone who did know hide the truth from her, and that pissed the princess off right good. It upset her to think how her father didn't realize how mature she was, and how she was mentally capable of handling something such as this. How sickening...

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Pike practiced and thought for what must have been hours, and then she realized with shock that an evening sky had risen. She was meeting her husband-to-be over dinner!

Hurriedly, Pike climbed up the vine and back into her bedroom. She stashed the Persian shamishir under her bed just as one of her nursemaids, a senile elderly woman, walked in.

"Ralph, dearest! Your father asked me to tell you to prepare for the Yule Ball! There are lots of lovely ladies waiting to meet you, Ralph, my dear!" exclaimed the old bat.

"Erm...yes... Yes, thank you for telling me this, ma'am..." Pike replied as respectfully as she could.

"You really are too sweet, young Ralph. Quite a young stud you are, just like your mother. Now I must be on my way. I'm heading for the Olympics," and with that, the nursemaid walked out the door.

_Honestly, _Pike thought, _Why doesen't father just fire them when they get this old?_

Shaking her head, Pike got ready. She had a bad feeling about tonight...

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At last, dressed beautifully in a blue Disney-princessish gown and crown, Pike joined her father in the throne room to await the arrival of the man she was to marry.

"Ah, Pike, my daughter! Did you have a safe trip down to the throne room? You didn't run into any bandits, did you?" asked Arnav.

Pike sighed. "No, father...I didn't meet any bandits."

"That's good. Bandits are quite awful, really. They'll attack you and --"

"I know, father."

"Good. Then I have taught you well."

Father and daughter waited.

At last, the portly messenger that had told Pike to see her father earlier that day bustled in and bowed.

"King Arnav, Princess Pike...we have guests," he said.

"They aren't bandits, are they?" Arnav asked frantically, his eye twitching.

"No, sir, I don't believe they are. They are here about the, uh...marriage?"

"Ah, yes...yes, of course. Send them in if you will, my good man."

"Right away, sir!" the messenger said enthusiastically as he stood up. With one last bow, he hurried out of the throne room.

Pike watched him go as she flexed her hands nervously...

Moments later, three cloaked figures strode in, lead by the messenger, who quickly left when he had finished escorting.

The figure in the middle stood ahead of the other two. His cloak covered his face, but he was handsomely shaped, tall and slim, yet muscular. The other two were obviously young males about her age.

"Good day to you, Your Highnesses. It is an honor to meet both of you," the man in the center said in a silky voice. He bowed, then stood up. The man then removed the hood of his cloak, and the two boys copied.

The man was very handsome, and looked to be somewhere in his 20's or 30's. He had long, black hair, fair skin, and purple eyes, that while beautiful, made Pike's skin crawl... There was something wrong with this guy, something EVIL...

The two boys with him were handsome, too, but just as strange. They seemed to be twins, despite a few minor differences in their faces. They had messy black hair, and gleaming red eyes, which fastened on Pike as they smiled identically at her... Smiles that were almost...menacing?

"My name is King Majora," said the man, smiling at Arnav, then looking at Pike unblinkingly.

"What is the name of your kingdom?" Pike demanded coldly.

Majora blinked stupidly.

"Uuuhhhh...uh...Bethlehem?"

Pike leaned towards her father.

"Didn't you just see the way he made that up off the top of his head?" she hissed so their guests could not hear.

"Shut up, Pike. Honestly, you're such a silly-willy-walnut-head!" said Arnav, tossling his daughter's hair before turning back to Majora and the two boys.

King Arnav stood up, walked to Majora, and heartily shook his hand.

"It is a pleasure to meet you, King Majora!" he exclaimed.

_My father said I was to marry a king...but...he is so much older than me! That's gross! _Pike thought. _This can't be right..._

"Pardon my interruption, but is it one of them I am to wed?" Pike asked in a "polite" tone that failed to hide her confusion, coldness, and anger. She pointed to the boy twin standing on the right, who blushed.

"What? Marry one of _them_? Oh, no, my lady! You're going to marry _me_!" said Majora, laughing. Arnav joined in. Pike's fears had been confirmed.

When the laughter stopped, Arnav examined the twins.

"What fine young boys these are!" he said.

"Ah, yes. This is Dark," said Majora, gesturing to the boy on the left. "And this is Shadow." He pointed to the one on the right.

"Hello," said Dark, his face...uh...dark. He seemed awfully serious.

"Hi," said Shadow with a smile.

That was another difference between them -- their voices. Dark's was low, Shadow's was very high.

"What interesting names..." Pike commented with a snort.

"Shut up, dearest," said Arnav.

"Now, are they your sons?" the Oceanan king asked Majora.

Majora's reaction was similar to that of the kingdom question.

"Uuuuuhhhh...yeah...yeah, sure. Let's go with that," he lied. Then he began to tell some obviously made up story about it.

"Their mother, like...died. It was really sad. They were so broken up over it..." Majora began dramatically. Shadow fake-coughed.

"She got sick and died," claimed Majora. Shadow coughed again.

"Oh? And what did she die of?" Pike asked.

"_PIKE_!" snapped Arnav.

"Oh, no, no, curiousity is such a good thing...I would be happy to answer..." Majora said, smiling at Pike. "Their mother died of AIDs, you see." That earned another cough from Shadow.

"Did she get it from you?" asked Pike. Arnav looked pissed, and opened his mouth to say something, but the fakely-pleasant "king of Bethlehem" spoke first.

"No, she didn't."

Shadow coughed loudly, and Majora, who had been trying to ignore it, turned fiercely to the boy.

"Do you need a cough drop, Shadow?" he demanded.

Shadow flashed a smile.

"No, no, I'm good."

Majora gazed at him steadily, and said, "Good." before turning back to Pike and Arnav.

"In conclusion, it was a real American tragedy..." said Majora.

"But this isn't America, uh...FATHER..." Dark said. Shadow snickered.

Majora looked at Dark, stony-faced.

"It was an expression, my SON..." he said darkly.

A chef popped into the room.

"Dinner is about to be served," she said. "Please proceed to the kitchen."

"Well, shall we go eat then?" Arnav asked. Majora nodded, and everyone filed out of the throne room.

_What liars these people are... What are they up to? They're weird... _Pike thought.

* * *

Everyone took their seats in the dining hall. It was then that Pike noticed that the twins had gone missing.

Turning to Majora, she asked, "Where have your sons gone to?"

"Oh, those kids? Hmm...I think they went to the bathroom," Majora lied.

"They went to the bathroom? Together? Wow. They must be really close," Pike said with a smirk.

Arnav whispered to Pike, "Stop being so rude! Their personal lives are none of our business!"

"Yes, they are very close indeed," Majora said coolly, staring at Pike with those purple eyes of his.

_More lies. What a surprise. But I don't want those THINGS wandering around my castle... _Pike thought.

She decided she'd find Shadow and Dark...but first she would wait so she wouldn't seem so suspicious.

There was alcohol served, and after a few minutes, Majora and Arnav seemed to be getting a little on the drunk side. Majora's "sons" had not returned.

"Pardon me, but I'm going to the bathroom. I'll be back in a moment," said Pike, standing up.

"Ok! If you see them lil' rascals in there, then feel free to join them! They would like it," Majora said drunkly. He started laughing, and so did Pike's father.

Pike quickly began to walk away. She didn't want to hear any more of their alcohol-impaired babble.

"Oh, and Pike, my son! Watch out for 'em bandits on the way!" Arnav slurred. Laughter rang out again, so Pike quickened her pace.

* * *

Pike first decided to check the bathrooms, just in case. As she had suspected, the boys weren't in any of them. But then Pike heard something upstairs... She realized with horror that the sounds were coming from HER room! The princess raced up the stairs and to her chambers.

_OOOOHH, IF THEY'RE IN THERE DOING GODDESSES KNOW WHAT... _Pike thought, opening the door. Then she screamed.

There stood the boys, wearing her bras. Her things were strewn all over the place.

"Oh, look! It's just my size!" laughed the high-pitched voice of Shadow, gesturing to the bra.

"Yeah, you have nice boobs, princess, I'll admit!" said Dark, grinning tauntingly at Pike.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING IN HERE...WITH MY BRAS! AND WHY IS MY ROOM IN SHAMBLES, YOU ASSHOLES?" Pike barked.

"Oh...we were curious," Dark explained casually. He picked up the shamishir, which was laying in the middle of the floor. The boy examined it.

"Oh, how nice. What a cool sword," he said, looking bored.

"Put that down!" Pike commanded, clenching her fists.

"Yeah, sure, that sword's cool, but it's not as pretty as this little ocarina!" said Shadow, picking up the Ocarina of Time.

Pike rushed over and jerked the instrument from his hands.

"What do the two of you want?"

"We said we were curious," Dark reminded her.

Princess Pike glared at both of them.

"Listen, you...both of you! I know your so-called 'father' is a liar, as are the two of you! What's he really marrying me for?"

"Can't tell you, princess," said Dark, winking.

"You most certainly aren't working for the forces of good, are you?" Pike asked steadily.

"Did it really take you that long to figure that out?" Dark asked, raising a brow. Shadow giggled.

"What is your true relationship with Majora? Where does he come from?"

Shadow said, "Majora is technically not our father, that is true. And the two of us never had a mother. But Majora is sort of like a father to us... After all, he DID bring us out of the Dark World using the Dark Mirror, and created me. He ressurrected my brother Dark here."

"The Dark Mirror! Where are you keeping it?" Pike asked, shocked.

"Again, not telling. Well...screw you. We're going back to dinner to get bloated," said Dark, taking off the bra and tossing it onto the floor. Shadow took off the one he was wearing and did the same. The boys walked to the door, but stopped in the doorway.

"After tonight, you will see us many more times, princess. You've met the two of us. But we would like to meet YOUR sister. Maybe she could help you with what's to come... Perhaps she could help you decipher that silly little prophecy," said Dark, his eyes flashing as he grinned. Then he and Shadow left to go back to dinner.

Pike was stunned by what he had said. How did he know she had a sister? And why did he talk about the prophecy like that? Though she did not trust Dark, the princess did take his words to heart.

That night, she would try to reach her long lost sister through telepathy. Dark times were ahead, and Princess Pike needed answers...


	3. Storm Cloud Dreams

_**Yay! The gang has finally come into the story after two long chapters! Is it just me, or has Link matured? Well...slightly?**_

**_Anyway, the visions Tetra had are all events in the story. This is probably gonna be the most gruesome fanfiction I've written yet. It gets to be so gorey, in fact, that I have to warn you -- __THIS STORY IS NOT FOR THE FAINT-HEARTED!_**

**_REVIEW_**

* * *

_**Chapter 3 -- Storm Cloud Dreams**_

"WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR! DON'T LOITER AROUND, GO FASTER! IF YOU GUYS DON'T START SHAKIN' A LEG, WE'RE GONNA LOSE ALL OUR TREASURE AND CARGO TO THE STORM, IDIOTS!" Tetra screamed at her crew over the howling wind.

Fierce storms had raged throughout the Great Sea for the past month. The weather was either dismal or downright dangerous. And not to mention the weird dreams that Tetra had been having...

It was all too much to be a coincidence. A feeling of foreboding and chill had hung in the air for an entire month.

It had been three months since Link, Tetra, and Bambi defeated Vaati. For the first two months, all had went well. The weather was calm, and everyone was in high spirits. Prince Komali had finally gotten his ass back to Dragon Roost Island, and Daphness and Nabooru had gotten married, which meant that Hyrule's old king would be off their backs as he would be too busy fucking his wife.

But then all these strange things began happening, and Tetra knew something bad was going to happen. Her dreams were haunted with images of a sky raining blood, a spooky old mansion, a church, the living dead, and strangest of all, a handsome man with fair skin, long black hair, and purple eyes... However, the captain did not want to talk about it to Link or Bambi. She was afraid that they wouldn't understand, wouldn't feel all that she had felt. After all, they had not come to her with any complaints. Well, complaints involving unusual activity, anway...

At last, Tetra watched Bambi scurry below decks, a barrel of bombs in her arms. That was the last of the things that needed to be protected from the storm, so Tetra followed her to the safety of the lower decks.

"I hope these storms end soon," said Bambi, setting down the barrel amongst the others.

Bambi was the newest member of the crew. The months when she was the "enemy" seemed so long ago. Link and Tetra had despised her, but as it turned out, they had been hating the wrong person. Bambi had been posessed by the wind sorcerer Vaati, so he had been the enemy all along. Tetra had broken his hold over Bambi using a Light Arrow, and with Bambi's and Link's help, the three defeated Vaati.

After the ordeal, Bambi had admitted to being too dull-witted in her past. She had vowed to become a stronger person, and had made good to her words. She had once been in love with Vaati, and said that falling for him was the biggest mistake of her life.

Bambi generally didn't talk about her experiences with Vaati. Tetra could tell it still hurt her inside, so she never mentioned it to Bambi. Link made sure to bring it up all the time, of course.

Link had many issues with Bambi. It was as if he thought she might stab him if he so much as turned his back. He behaved as if Bambi really was evil. Bambi had wanted to get along with him, but had given up trying to make nice with him after about two months. Now back to the present.

"I'm surprised the ship hasn't been blown to smithereens by this weather," Tetra grumbled. These conditions were a pirate captain's worst nightmare.

"It is a little strange. The atmosphere is so depressing..."

Tetra perked up. Maybe she wasn't as alone as she had thought! Others had seemed to feel the things she had!

"Ah, how silly of me to say something like that... Probably just a stroke of bad luck, I suppose," Bambi said with a shrug as she wiped a wet lock of her long, curly blonde hair away from her silver eyes. Tetra grew frustrated by these words.

"I'm gonna go dry off and go to bed. Goodnight, Tetra," Bambi said, walking away.

"Ditto," sighed Tetra, heading off to her quarters.

* * *

Tetra found Link lying naked on her bed when she entered her bedroom. 

"Oh Tetra, it's Tuesday night, and you know what THAT means..." Link said, smirking.

"I'm not in the mood, Link. And you're on my side of the bed. Get off," Tetra snapped, shoving Link onto the floor.

"What's your problem lately! Honestly!" Link retorted, standing up and climbing onto his side of the bed.

Tetra rolled onto her side facing away from Link.

"I'm not in the mood. I have a lot on my mind," Tetra said quietly.

"Y-you're not pregnant, are you?" Link squeaked.

"What? No! Why is it that whenever something goes wrong, you say I'm pregnant?"

"First thing that comes to mind, I guess. We don't use protection much, you know."

There was silence for a while. Tetra battled herself as to whether or not she should tell Link about her dreams. She _did_ confide most things in him... But this was different. She needed to be certain that she would be taken seriously.

_I should tell him... _Tetra thought. She turned to face Link and opened her mouth to speak, but found that he was sound asleep.

Tetra sighed -- it was late, and she decided that she ought to go to bed too. Although she didn't see much point in it. The dreams would come again...

* * *

The man with the purple eyes, the sky raining blood, the living dead... Images of a girl turning into a tiger, a boy turning into a wolf...then a picture of the same boy chained up, gasping for breath and dripping in blood... Then Bambi tied to a flaming post, and an angry young girl in a wedding gown... Then, as if someone pressed an off button, the strange and sometimes horrific images stopped. Tetra's dream became black nothingness... A big, quiet, black nothing. This thick blanket of inactivity was punctured by the voice of a girl. This had not happened yet in these dreams... 

_"Tetra..."_

"Who the fuck are YOU?" Tetra's thoughts snapped.

_"My name is Pike... Princess Pike of Oceana."_

"Oceana?"

_"Yes. Oceana is a kingdom that is hidden from the Great Sea."_

"That's real nice an' all, but I still don't know who you are, uh...PIKE."

_"You know me, but you don't remember me."_

"I don't see how that's possible."

_"We were born together."_

"Ok, ok, I'll play along... So, PIKE...our mothers were friends or something?"

_"No. We share a mother."_

"I don't have a sister, so cut the crap. My only family was my mother, and she died."

_"Wrong. Your mother had twins, me and you. And you have a father -- he is king of Oceana. His name is Arnav."_

"Wow, this is one fucked up illusion..."

_"This is no fantasy. I am your sister speaking to you through telepathy. Please...you must help me..."_

"What is it you want?"

_"Our father is making me marry a man named Majora. I don't know what he's up to, but I know Majora is evil. My dreams have told me to contact you. Dreams, and the advice of...well...some strange young boys. Please, come to Oceana. The fate of the world depends upon it!"_

Now Tetra was downright curious. This voice seemed so...so...REAL...

"How will I get to Oceana!"

_"I'll lead the way. All you must do is follow your instincts."_

"What!"

_"FOLLOW YOUR INSTINCTS!"_

"Ok, ok!"

_"You'll know Oceana when you see it. I'll be meeting you soon, my sister..."_

"Wait! Don't go!"

But the blackness melted away, and the voice did not reply. Tetra woke up. She found that she was scared and sweating, yet curious at the same time. She could not forget that voice. But was it all just a dream? And those images...what was so scary about them? True, some of them were quite gruesome, but they were nothing to freak out over.

Tetra noticed that Link was sitting up, staring at her.

"Tetra? Are you, uh...ok? Nightmares?"

Tetra gulped, nodded, and sat up.

"Was it the one about the rabbit?" Link asked gently.

Tetra shook her head.

"NO, it was NOT the one about the rabbit!" she spat.

"Well, sor-ry! What was it about then? Come on, you can tell me..."

"You can tell me, too!" said Aryll, suddenly popping up out of the covers in between Link and Tetra.

"Aryll! What are you doing here?" Link barked.

"I've been here for a long time, big brother! I was playing with the snake in the bed!" Aryll said.

"What snake -- oh... ARYLL! DON'T EVER PLAY WITH THAT SNAKE AGAIN!" Link snapped.

"Oh, but the snake is so much FUN! If you pet it it spits venom!" Aryll announced.

"Aryll, you naive little bitch, GET OUT OF HERE!" Tetra screamed, picking up Aryll and throwing her out the door. Aryll screamed and hit the wall. Tetra then got up and shut the door.

"When's your grandmother getting out of prison?" Tetra asked Link as she locked her door.

"She's not even in prison. She's on the loose," Link replied in a matter-of-fact tone. Tetra rolled her eyes, shook her head, and got back into bed.

"So what about this nightmare of your's?" Link asked. Tetra hesitated.

"You won't take me seriously... I know you won't."

"I proved I loved you, didn't I? I saved you from Dark Link and Bambi --"

"Vaati," Tetra corrected.

"WHATEVER! But when it comes down to it, you know I love you, and you can tell me anything!" Link pleaded.

Tetra sighed.

"Ok, ok, fine... Well...I have these nightmares that show...well...images... I see things like a sky raining blood, a strange man, a girl turning into a tiger, and a boy turning into a wolf, then that boy chained up and...and...bleeding...all over..." Tetra shuddered. "The boy...he looks like you. Well, like Dark Link, but...different...

Anyway, I had that dream tonight, but there was something different. There was..."

Tetra didn't want to tell Link about the voice yet.

"Umm...nevermind..." she grumbled. Link looked annoyed.

"I...I'm going back to bed..." Tetra said. She was eager to, anyway -- she wanted to hear that voice again.

Link grumbled and blew out the candles, and when she fell back asleep, Tetra was disappointed by a dreamless slumber.

* * *

Link and Bambi watched Tetra standing at the front of the ship, watching the ocean blankly. Rain was falling softly from a dark, gloomy sky. 

"What do you think is up with her? I'm worried. She's determind to go somewhere, but...she's not telling us where..." Bambi whispered to Link.

The day after Tetra had heard the voice of Pike in her dreams, she puzzled her crew by changing the boat's direction. She would not tell them where she planned to go. All she said was to trust her. Link thought she had lost her mind.

"She's been having schizo dreams or something. I told her I'd lend her some of my pills, but she slapped me," Link told Bambi.

"Did you try just talking to her?"

"Well...I...uh...NOBODY ASKED YOU!" Link snapped, shoving Bambi to the floor and stalking away angrily.

Grumbling as she got up and dusted herself off, Bambi slowly approached Tetra.

"Tetra? Are you...alright?"

"Look, don't bother me, Bambi. Sorry, but...I'm thinking."

"Tetra, where are we going?"

"You'll see when we get there. If I told you now, you wouldn't believe me." Tetra turned to gaze at Bambi, giving her a look that plainly stated, 'go away'. Bambi retreated, thinking hard.

* * *

Link sat on the edge of his and Tetra's bed, pouting. 

_Stupid Bambi...always acting so smart! What a know-it-all! _he thought angrily. His chain of anti-Bambi thoughts was interrupted as Aryll skipped into the room and jumped onto Link's lap.

"Hi, brother!" she said happily.

"What do you want, Aryll?" Link asked, thoroughly annoyed.

"What's wrong with Tetra? Senza said that she 'lost her marbles'," Aryll told her brother.

"I don't know. Sure seems like it."

"Big brother, I lost my marble collection. Does that make me like Tetra?"

"Shut up, stupid," Link mumbled.

"Tetra was also saying something. Something about a...a...umm...'higher purpose'?" Aryll said steadily.

"'Higher purpose'?" Link repeated, puzzled.

"Yeah! What is a 'higher purpose', big brother?"

Link sighed.

"It means being meant to do something big in life..."

"Wow! Do I have a higher purpose?"

"Probably not."

Aryll shoved Link onto the floor, took off his shoes, and ran away.

"Little bitch..." Link murmured under his breath.

He began to think about what Aryll had said. Why would Tetra be talking about a higher purpose? And where was the destination she was so anxious to get to that she skipped meals?

Link knew that he was very close to finding these answers the next day... Niko told him to hurry to the decks, because everyone was there.

When Link arrived, all the other crew members, Tetra, and Aryll were already there, watching in shock as their ship sailed towards a humongous golden archway. Beyond it, they could see a magnificent kingdom.

"This is it...this is where my heart has lead me..." Tetra whispered to herself.


	4. The Royal Family

_**LISTEN UP! Planning for the sequel to Four Swords Plus is finished. Its sequel is called The Legend of Zelda: The Prince of Ny-Potho. **_

**_IT TIES IN WITH THIS STORY! IT EXPLAINS HOW THE PROPHECY WAS CREATED, AND HOW THE WEAPONS THAT YOU HEAR ABOUT LATER IN THE STORY WERE CREATED! YOU WILL LIKE IT! SO READ IT WHEN IT COMES OUT!_**

**_I also have put a madeup character encyclopedia on my bio page. It contains characters that even YOUpeople have yet to hear about, including characters for The Prince of Ny-Potho and Bowl of Blood, which is a story about Link and Aryll's, Tetra's, and Bambi's parents' life stories. Kinda contains some half-spoilers...but not really, I guess._**

**_Anyway, enjoy this chapter and REVIEW! And look for The Prince of Ny-Potho coming soon! An official summary will be released with the next chapters of FS and this story._**

* * *

_**Chapter 4 -- The Royal Family**_

The pirate ship sailed through the golden arch. In it lie a beautiful, Roman-like city, with white stone streets, white marble buildings with gold roofs, and a road of clear water running through the middle of the city. The streets were crowded with passerby, who whispered and shouted when they spotted the pirate ship. This arrival seemed to attract a lot of negative attention...

"Where are we?" Bambi whispered to Tetra, staring down at the crowd of people forming.

The people looked normal, but their clothes were different. They wore togas and tunics of various colors, and sandals. The weather was warm, and accordingly, the residents of the kingdom were dressed for the weather.

"Are we dead? Are we in Athens!" Link squeaked, beginning to panic. Niko slapped him.

"Calm down, Link...we are not in Athens..." soothed Mako.

"Er...Miss Tetra?" Gonzo stated, looking towards their captain. The other members followed his gaze.

Tetra was blank for a moment, but then her eyes lit up and she spun to face her crew.

"You thought I was crazy, didn't you! A voice told me my heart would lead me here! The girl...she spoke through telepathy...she's real! This is where she lives! Which means...I...I have a sister..."

The members of Tetra's crew looked frightened.

"This place looks like Athens!" Aryll piped. Link let out a scared shriek.

"Why are you so afraid of Athens, Link?" Bambi asked. Link began to shake uncontrollably.

"Forget about him! NOW WHAT ARE YOU ALL WAITING FOR? DROP THE FUCKING ANCHOR!" Tetra ordered. Senza and Nudge hurried to complete the task.

"Tetra, what do we do? Do we get off the ship? These people don't seem very pleased with our arrival..." Bambi whispered.

"Well, I...uh..." Tetra stuttered, but stopped when a familiar voice rang out from the crowd.

"Back off! Back off! Don't worry, the situation is under control!" cried a girl about Tetra's age as she darted through the crowd. People hurried to get out of her way. They all bowed. The girl's voice...it was the one in Tetra's dream! The girl ran until she stood right by the pirate ship.

"Come on down! It's safe!" she cried.

The pirate crew looked at their captain questioningly, unsurely, but Tetra just said quietly, "You heard what she said. Get off the boat." They obeyed.

Tetra was the last to leave. While her crew was getting off, she was examining the young girl...her sister.

The girl was, as said before, about Tetra's age -- twelve, nearly thirteen. she was average height, thin, and had dirty blonde hair that went down to her shoulders. Tetra wasn't close enough to her to see any physical resemblances.

At least, Tetra got off of the boat. Awkwardly, the girl walked over to her, while the crew members stood off to the side nervously. The crowd of people watched with interest.

The girl reached out a hand. Tetra shook it slowly.

"I'm Pike...princess of Oceana. I am the one who talked to you through telepathy that night. I'm your sister..."

Tetra looked her over again. She had big brown eyes, and was wearing a white toga and golden sandals. She was also wearng a golden circlet. The pirate captain noticed many similarities in their faces...

Tetra's heart was beating wildly. A whole new world had unfolded. She had just met her sister, and discovered that she too was a princess of Oceana.

"Please...let us go to the castle. I need to talk to you. There are questions I have that only you can answer, and I'm sure there are questions that you have that I can answer. I'm also guessing you want to meet your father..." Pike smiled nervously.

Father...there was another shocker.

"Father...m-my mother always told me my father had died in a freak masturbating accident..." Tetra uttered.

"My father told me that my mother was a prostitute... Some friends of mine who knew about the, uh...whole event as to how we were conceived...well...they informed me that she was a pirate," said Pike.

Tetra nodded.

"Yeah, she taught me all I know..."

Pike said, "Well, we should get going." She turned to Tetra's crew.

"Come along. All of you." Pike began to walk, and everyone scrambled after her. The people on the streets watched unblinkingly.

"You have to WALK places? Don't you get a carriage or something?" Link asked rudely. Tetra stepped on his foot.

Pike glanced at him.

"I wasn't exactly supposed to leave the castle. I escaped and ran here," she said plainly.

"How far is the castle?" Bambi asked, peering ahead.

"It's a good walk," Pike replied, pointing at a large kingdom peeking over the roofs of many houses and buildings.

* * *

The walk seemed like forever, but at last, they reached the front doors of the kingdom. Pike ordered the surprised guards to let them in, and the party made their way inside.

The castle was beautiful, full of paintings; made of white marble and white stone with gold everywhere. Pike, however, did not give her guests time to gawk. She quickly began to lead them to the throne room.

Tetra had butterflies in her stomach. Her throat was dry.

Pike stopped before the throne room doors and turned to face the pirates.

"I would like it if just Tetra came in...ok?"

The pirates nodded.

"Well, you certainly like giving orders, don't you?" Link asked. Bambi covered his mouth.

"Sorry, Your Highness, he's --"

"Don't apologize," Pike said, waving Bambi off. She turned back to Tetra.

"Are you ready?"

"This is...really...sudden..." Tetra said breathlessly.

"I'm sorry if all this information was pushed upon you too suddenly... I know how you feel. But I really need you to know this. We both need more knowledge. Something bad is going to happen, but I'll talk to you about that later... Well...let me introduce you to your father..." said Pike, opening up the door. She and Tetra stepped inside.

* * *

King Arnav looked up at the arrivals in his throne room with surprise. He rose quickly.

"Pike, who is this girl? Is she a bandit? She must be! I see she has a bandana -- a sure sign of a bandit! GUARDS, THERE'S A --"

"Father, no! She's not a bandit!" Pike snapped, rushing towards her father while pulling Tetra by the hand. She nudged the stunned pirate forward until she was very close to the king. She whispered to Tetra, "Meet your father...Arnav."

"Look at her, father... Look at her, and maybe you'll know who she is..." Pike said, looking down as though she were ashamed.

Tetra felt her cheeks grow red. Her heart thumped even harder under the gaze of the king. She saw the similarities in appearance between her and her father -- but did he?

The king was a tall, burly man with a broad chest, and dark, slightly creased skin. He had hard crystal blue eyes, and curly blonde hair. Most of his facial features were masked by an incredibly long, curly blonde beard. His hairiness made him look far older than Tetra guessed he actually was.

The king stopped his examination of Tetra, and looked back at Pike.

"I know not of who she is! Now get her out of my sight or I'll --"

"DOESEN'T SHE LOOK LIKE SOMEONE YOU FUCKED MANY YEARS AGO?" Pike bellowed nastily.

"Pike, do not use that language and tone with me!" snapped the king.

"THINK ABOUT WHAT I JUST SAID!"

Arnav fell silent. He looked down at Tetra slowly, and studied her again. Some realization seemed to hit him, and his eyes narrowed and flashed angrily.

"Sylvia..." he whispered.

"You had two daughters, not one, father. I think you forgot that for a while. I'm making you remember..." Pike said darkly.

Tetra was scared and confused. She did not feel welcome. Completely overwhelmed, she wanted to burst into tears on the spot, but she knew she couldn't, and held herself back.

The anger seeped out of the king's features.

For the first time, Arnav spoke to Tetra while seeing her as his daughter, not a bandit.

"You...you're the other twin..." he said slowly. Tetra squeaked and nodded.

"And Sylvia raised you?"

Tetra nodded again.

"Father, I want to hear the story the maidens told me in your words. Tetra needs to know..." said Pike.

* * *

Aryll examined a spider crawling on the floor.

"You are a spider...yet...you look like an ant. That makes you a spidery-ant..." she whispered seriously, staring at the insect intently.

"Jeez, Aryll, you're such a retard..." Link snorted.

"I wonder how things are going in there...I heard shouting..." Bambi said, more to herself than to anyone else.

"Me too," commented Senza.

"Tetra never told us about any of this," said Niko, looking rather offended.

"If it were _you_, would _you_ tell?" Bambi asked Niko, raising a brow. Niko grumbled and looked away.

The crew heard footsteps approaching. They watched with surprise as a young woman looking to be in her 20's popped out. She was strange looking, as she had long blue hair, blue eyes, and a blue gown.

"Are you lot the pirates?" she asked, blinking.

"No! We're from the circus!" Link answered sarcastically.

"Who are you?" the woman asked coldly, her eyes locking on Link.

"I'm Link, and I'm proud of it," announced Link. The woman looked downright shocked. She looked down to Aryll.

"What is your name, young lady?" she asked.

"Aryll!" Link's little sister said happily. The woman smiled, as if this news was simply wonderful. She then studied Bambi carefully.

"Are you Bambi?" the woman asked. Bambi blinked.

"H-huh! Yeah...yeah, I am... How do you know?" she asked.

"Who are you?" Link demanded.

"Me? My name is Artet. I am honored to finally meet you three...Link, Bambi...Aryll. Please...you must come with me. There is much I need to tell you," said the woman excitedly.

"My mom had always told me not to talk to strangers," Link said, nodding defiantly.

"That's what I want to talk to you about! Your mother!" said Artet.

"Mommy?" Aryll asked, looking away from the spidery-ant to stare at Artet. Artet nodded.

"What about me?" Bambi asked.

"There are some things you should know about your mother, too. Now come with me...I will have you returned here soon," said Artet, grabbing Link and Bambi by the hands. Aryll latched onto Link legs, and they were whisked away.

"Tell Tetra that, uh...we'll be back! And if we don't come back, then we're being raped!" Link called to the rest of the pirates before disappearing around a corner.

"Aw...I wanted to be the one to rape him..." sighed Gonzo.

* * *

"And that's how it happened..." Arnav said, finishing his story breathlessly.

Tetra shook angrily.

"Y...you ordered her...my mother...to be...KILLED!"

Arnav's gaze snapped to Tetra.

"Yes, I did. And with good reason. Pirates are nearly as low as bandits," he replied, glaring and shaking his head.

"Father..." sighed Pike.

"YOU BASTARD! SOME FATHER YOU ARE!" Tetra screamed, tears rolling down her cheeks. Pike watched helplessly.

Arnav stood up.

"DO NOT TALK TO ME THAT WAY, CHILD! I AM A KING!"

"I'M YOUR DAUGHTER! OH, RIGHT...NO I'M NOT! I'M THE 'OTHER' CHILD THAT YOU TRIED TO JUST FORGET ABOUT!" Tetra yelled. "THE ONE SPAWNED BY THE WOMAN YOU LOATHED MOST!"

Arnav looked about to lose his temper entirely. He balled up his fists.

"MY MOTHER...PIKE'S MOTHER...DIED YEARS AGO! YOU SHOULDN'T HATE THE DEAD!" Tetra said angrily, wiping some tears away roughly.

"I HAVE EVERY RIGHT TO HATE THE DEAD! AND I CAN HATE YOU JUST AS EASILY!" bellowed Arnav.

"WELL, YOU KNOW WHAT? SO CAN I! I CAN HATE YOU!"

"You have quite a mouth..." Arnav hissed, his face flushing angrily.

"AND I CAN SAY THINGS FAR WORSE..." Tetra warned. She was about to, had Arnav not hit her hard in the side of the head with his fist. Pike let out a shriek. Tetra gasped and stumbled backward.

Pike hugged the shocked-to-numbness Tetra.

"How could you, daddy?" said the Oceanan princess in a choked voice.

Arnav took a deep breath. Shame at what he had done briefly flashed across his face, but was replaced with a blank, emotionless expression.

"Fine, Terrah...Terry...whatever your name is. I apologize for that action, but it is obvious your mother never disciplined you. I didn't think she would, anyway... But..." Arnav sighed. "You are as much a daughter to me as Pike, blood-wise. Therefore, I grant stay in this castle for you and your CLOSEST friends...not your whole crew. I also invite you to attend Pike's engagement party." A look of despair from the mention of the engagement filled Pike's eyes.

Arnav sighed deeply and looked away.

"All I ask is that you stay out of my way. Now Pike...show her to her room. I don't want to hear from either of you for the rest of the night." Arnav sat down heavily on his throne, and put his face in his hands.

With one last glare at her father, Pike lead the shaking Tetra out of the throneroom.

* * *

"Miss Tetra!" cried Nudge as the two princesses exited the throneroom. He noticed the large bruise growing on his captains face. The others noticed it, too.

"Miss Tetra, what happened? Did he hit you?" Senza gasped.

"You can talk to her later...she needs to rest. I'll show the rest of you to the inn after I get her settled..." said Pike, quickly walking away with the ever-silent Tetra.

At last, Pike brought Tetra to one of the castle's many guest rooms. She shut the door, and Tetra plopped down on the bed, staring at the floor blankly.

Pike sat down by her sister and held her hand.

"Tetra? Are you ok? Look...I'm really sorry. I didn't expect him to do that. Father, you see, has a...well...rough nature. He didn't mean that, honestly, I saw the guilty look on his face, he --"

"Shut it," said Tetra hoarsely. Pike shut her mouth.

Tetra rolled her eyes.

"Look...I'm sorry...I...I just want to be left alone right now, ok?" said Tetra.

Pike nodded and smiled sympathetically.

"I understand. I really am sorry. Can we talk tomorrow? There's more I need to tell you...i-it's nothing that surprising, though!" said Pike.

"Sure, whatever..." sighed Tetra. Pike nodded and quietly left.

Once Pike was gone, Tetra laid down and looked around the room. It was a handsome place, with the usual white-gold theme, but with pale, peach colored furniture. Tetra grabbed a pillow and hugged it to her.

She was too physically and emotionally exhausted to think. Tetra fell asleep to her usual nightmares, which had suddenly become so vivid it made her sick.

* * *

Artet and Bambi dismounted their horses to stop outside a temple-like shrine. With Artet's assistance, Aryll was able to get down off the horse she and Link were sharing. Link was the last to dismount. He looked positively excited.

"Woah, that was like, soooo much fun! Horses are awesome, man!" exclaimed Link. He had recieved both an emotional and sexual boost from riding it. It had been the first time he had ever seen a horse, let alone ridden one. The bouncing motion between his legs was quite a pleasant sensation, one that he had quite often experienced with Tetra.

"Calm down, Link..." sighed Bambi.

"Come on, inside with you lot!" said Artet, ushering them inside the shrine.

Link, Aryll, and Bambi entered the shrine, and were surprised to see three other strange looking maidens watching them. The women stood around a pedestal containing a sword engulfed with thick moss and vines.

Artet followed them in.

"My sisters! I've found them! They came on the pirate ship that just came in!" she said.

One of the maidens was a lady with blood red hair cut to just beneath her chin. She had red eyes and a red gown. The next was a woman with pale green hair held in cinamon buns on the sides of her heads. She had matching eyes and dress. The last woman was the youngest; she was about sixteen years of age, and her purple hair was pulled into braids. Her purple eyes glinted with curiousity at the sight of the children. She was garbed in a purple gown.

"Who...?" uttered the red lady.

"These are Link, Aryll, and Bambi. Astasia and Brigette's Link, Aryll, and Bambi..." said Artet so quietly the others could barely hear her.

"Are you serious?" gasped the green maiden.

"HOLD IT! OK, OK, WHAT'S GOING ON HERE?" Link demanded. "WHO ARE YOU PEOPLE, AND DO YOU INTEND TO RAPE US?"

"Link, this is Fiza," said Artet, gesturing to the red maiden. "And this is Lunatet." She gestured to the green woman. "And this is our little sister Lazerus." She nodded to the purple girl, who waved.

"Wonderful. Only we don't know who you are," snarled Link.

Lunatet strode forward, beaming.

"Children, we are your aunts!" she said.

"Huh...?" Bambi said stupidly, cocking her head.

"'Aunt' as in 'spidery'?" inquired Aryll. Link shoved her to the ground.

"Your mothers never told you?" asked Fiza.

"What connection would our mothers have to YOU people? And what connection would they have with EACHOTHER?" Link asked rudely, glaring distastefully at Bambi.

"You know your mothers were Astasia and Brigette, right?" asked Lazerus. Link and Bambi nodded.

"Astasia and Brigette were sisters. OUR sisters..." said Artet.

Link and Bambi were shocked.

"So...Link...Aryll...and I...are..." Bambi began, but was cut off by Link.

"COUSINS?" Link finished loudly.

Fiza nodded.

"FUCK!" Link screamed, stepping on Bambi's foot.

"OW! LINK!" Bambi whined, shoving him away.

"No, no, please don't fight!" cried Lunatet.

"How could our mothers be related to YOU people! They were normal looking!" said Link.

"No, they weren't naturally. You see, they, like us, had the ability to disguise themselves to look like normal women. Your mothers were magical in truth. They helped us watch this kingdom and this sword...the Four Sword," said Lazerus, nodding to the covered, weathered blade.

Link and Bambi looked confused. Aryll just wasn't listening.

"Dull-witted children..." grumbled Fiza.

"Your mothers grew up here. Then one day, a pirate ship came, and they snuck onto it as it was leaving (it's quite a tale, you'll here more about it later). The pirates discovered them, and tossed them overboard. Luckily, your mothers survived. Bambi, your mother wound up on Windfall; Link, Aryll, your mother found herself washed up on an island known as Outset. We found this out because we communicated with them through telepathy after they left," explained Artet.

"And you still look just as they described you..." Lunatet gushed.

"Your mothers met your fathers, and, well...had you," finished Fiza.

"But Brigette and Astasia died when you were young... Brigette was killed by the FBI --" Lazerus began.

"Because your idiot father CORRUPTED her!" Fiza said nastily to Bambi.

"Shut up, Fiza. Anyway...then Astasia died when you were seven, right, Link? Aryll was just a baby..." said Lazerus.

Link nodded.

"Yeah...she and my father did some drugs one night, and that killed them..." said Link steadily.

"Is that how they're saying she died?" Lunatet whispered, tears filling her eyes.

Lazerus sighed, then looked at Link with a hard expression.

"Your parents didn't die from drugs, Link. That is a lie. They were murdered..."


	5. Incognito

_**Wow, this chapter is long... Took me long enough.**_

**_Anyway, the story about the Ny-Potho tribe is gonna be in the Four Sword sequel. I mean...that's what it's about. The official summary for it will probably come next chapter._**

**_REVIEW_**

* * *

_**Chapter 5 -- Incognito**_

"M-murdered?" Link uttered.

Lazerus nodded.

"We saw it through our dreams..." Lunatet said through tears.

"How did...? No bears? No drugs?" Link asked stupidly.

Fiza shook her head.

"Nuh-uh. No bears or drugs. Well...your grandmother never liked poor, sweet Astasia, and one day, she came up behind her and just kind of...umm...chopped her head off with an ax. Then she went and did it to your father..." she said.

Link was shocked again.

"My grandmother...murdered...my parents? With an AX!"

"Basically," said Fiza. Lunatet, Lazerus, and Artet looked down sadly.

"Did I miss something?" Aryll asked, looking up from a piece of grass.

Link said nastily to her, "Oh, no, nothing Aryll, except for the fact the fact that our grandmother chopped mommy and daddy's heads off with an AX!"

Aryll was silent for a moment.

"Oh," she said casually, going back to looking at the grass.

Link was about to kick Aryll, but Bambi spoke. She touched his arm.

"Listen, Link, I'm really sorry..." she said softly. Link jerked his arm away, and the maidens watched silently.

Bambi sighed.

"I know that while he was in my body, Vaati told you how my parents supposedly died... He told you my mom died of sickness when I was very young, and that my dad was murdered when I was six. He told you that because that was what I told him... I never told anyone the truth before because it's really embarassing, but as my cousin, you have the right to know... Well...my mom and dad were shot by the FBI..."

"Why the fuck do I care?" Link asked.

"I just thought you should know," Bambi defended. "I thought it might make you feel better about how your parents died."

"Well, it didn't help..." Link growled, balling up his fists and turning away.

"Link, she had good intentions," said Artet quietly.

"SHUT UP!" Link barked. "I want to get out of here!"

"Very well," sighed Artet. "The horses know how to return to the castle. Just ride."

Link seized Aryll by the arm and began storming away.

"Good-bye..." Lunatet called. Link ignored her, but Bambi waved nervously at the maidens before following Link and Aryll out.

Once outside, Link mounted his horse. He was in such a state of shock, anger, and pain that he didn't care how it felt between his legs! He pulled Aryll on with him, and Bambi got onto the horse she had ridden before. The animals set off on the trail to the castle.

"Link, I know that this is hard to handle..." she said.

"DON'T YOU KNOW HOW TO SHUT UP?" Link screamed. All was silent for a moment before he started talking again.

"Look, my grandmother and I never got along, and if it weren't for her, I still would have had parents! She killed them behind my back!"

Bambi sighed, and Aryll looked on absentmindedly.

* * *

At last, Link, Bambi, and Aryll reached the castle by nightfall. They put their horses back in the stable, and were allowed entry back into the castle. The guards must have recognized them. 

It appeared as if Pike had been waiting for them. She was sitting on a couch in the entry hall, and rose to greet them.

"Oh, you're back!" she said. A frown formed on her lips when she saw the solemn expressions.

"Is everything all right?"

"PEACHY," Link hissed.

"Everything's fine," Bambi reassured, glancing at Link. Pike decided not to question further.

Walking toward them, she said, "Listen... All the pirates but Tetra are staying at an inn near here. Tetra's bedroom is up the stairs, down some some stairs, through the northern door, through the eastern door and at the end of the hall."

"Huh?" Link asked.

Pike ignored him, and continued, "She said she wanted you to stay with her in her room, so that's where you're going. Aryll and Bambi will share a room. I'll show you two to it. Get a good night's rest, because there is an important matter I need to discuss with all of you tomorrow. Well, good-night, Link..." Pike gently took Aryll by the hand, and lead her and Bambi away.

"Good-night, brother!" called Aryll. Bambi looked at him sympathetically before she and the other girls disappeared around a corner.

Link sighed. He was exhausted.

"Ok...up some stairs, down some stairs, then...something. Fuck. I don't know where I'm going." But Link started walking anyway.

* * *

Link's feet ached. He had been walking for what felt like hours, and had not found Tetra's room. Frustrated and tired nearly to the point of tears, he sat down against the wall and hugged his knees. 

"Dammit..."

His soft words echoed throughout the eerie, dark halls. The castle was downright creepy at night, he realized. The fact that he had not run into so much as a servant or guard was both annoying and strange.

"Are you lost?" came a silky, high-pitched yet still masculine voice from the darkness.

"Who's there!" Link demanded, jumping to his feet.

"Just a mere castle servant... An advisor, to be exact. A really awesome advisor," said the voice. It was...strangely familiar. One that made the hairs on the back of Link's neck stand up.

A second later, the voice's owner stepped out of the darkness. He was dressed in black pants, shirt, and gloves. The shirt had a bit of silver armor on it. The man's face was hidden by a long, billowy black hooded cloak, but a few strands of silky silver hair were out of the hood and falling down the shoulders.

"Have you lost your way, little boy? I'm cool enough to help you to where you're going..." offered the man.

The voice, the arrogance, the silver hair... This was just too familiar. But Link knew it wasn't who it seemed like, but he could not shake the bad feeling.

"Uhh...yeah..." said Link. His heart turned to ice when two more men, dressed identically to the first, stepped out of the shadows too.

They were both obviously men, but had different body types than the one who had spoken to Link. The first man was lean -- these two were fat. Link could not see their faces either.

"This castle's easy to get lost in, isn't it?" chuckled the fat man on the right. His voice wasn't familiar, but such could not be said for the man on the left. He had a familiar voice, too.

"Where is it you're going?" asked the man on the left in a deep, loud, rough voice. Link's heart skipped a couple beats, as this voice brought even more bad thoughts, but he shook them away. The theories forming in his mind were impossible. His imagination was working over-time, he figured.

"Um...are all three of you castle advisors?" Link asked.

"Yes," the men replied in unison.

"Oh..." Link said softly, his voice trailing off because of his discomfrot.

"Now where is it you want to go?" demanded the left man so sharply Link got scared.

"Jeez, to my girlfriend's room! Lay off!" Link snapped.

"Oh, you mean Tetra, don't you..." said the middle man in a soft, dangerous voice. Link was about ready to shit his pants by now.

"Yeah, her! How do you know?"

"We're castle advisors, remember? We know these things..." hissed the man on the right.

"And why are you guys cloaked! Were you stalking me? Are you going to rape me?"

"No. Tch...why would we want to? Now shut up and follow us..." said the slim man, turning sharply and walking down the hall. The other two followed.

Link wasn't sure what to do. He didn't like the looks of these guys, but what choice did he have, honestly? I mean, as long as they didn't actually come out and say, 'we're gonna rape and kill you, bitch' then they were harmless...right? Link got up and followed them, keeping a good distance behind.

"Soooo...do you guys have names?" Link asked, trying to make conversation and soothe his fears.

"None that you need to know," said the fat guy that had been on the right (the unfamiliar one).

"Oooooook then..." Link replied, backing off the subject of names nervously.

The group walked on, and finally, they stopped quite abruptly. So abruptly, in fact that Link crashed straight into the nice ass of the slim guy.

"Watch where you're goin', bitch!" snapped the man.

"Sorry!" Link grumbled, backing off quickly.

"Her room is there," said the unfamiliar guy, pointing to a door just in front of them.

"Umm, thanks!" Link said hurriedly, running into the room and slamming the door behind him.

* * *

With a huffy breath, the first man Link had met pushed off his hood, running his hand through his long, silver hair. His red eyes flashed, and an angry pink flush glowed on the pale, greyish-blue skin of his handsomely shaped face. 

"Why didn't we just kill the little bastard!" he snapped.

The second man, the fat one that was also familiar to Link, took off his hood. He had green skin, red hair, and orange eyes. There was a jewel in the middle of his forhead.

"Don't ask me, Vaati... It was Agahnim here who held us back..." he hissed, turning to face the other fat guy. Vaati looked at him too.

The third man took off his hood. He had the same, pale, silvery-blue skin tone as Vaati, but this man's skin was wrinkled with age. He had silver eyes and silver hair.

"Majora put me in charge of the two of you for...obvious reasons. His orders were to lurk about and spy on the castle while trying to look cool at the same time. He SPECIFICALLY ASKED that we not kill ANYONE!" the man known as Agahnim said sternly.

"That was Link! The boy who killed Vaati and I! We should have made an exception!" the man with green skin hissed.

"Majora's rules do not leave room for exceptions, Ganondorf... You should be kissing his feet, for he ressurected you and Vaati..." replied Agahnim darkly.

"He would understand! This kid could interfere with our plans!" Ganondorf insisted.

"Rules are rules," Agahnim stated.

Vaati, however, was not thinking of the argument going on between Agahnim and Ganondorf. One of Agahnim's remarks had particularly pissed him off.

"What do you mean Majora put you in charge for obvious reasons? I'm cool!" he whined.

"Pipe down! We'll attract attention!" snapped Agahnim, and the trio began to walk away from Tetra's door.

"I like attracting attention though..." said Vaati.

Ganondorf snorted.

"He didn't mean the type of attention you're always thinking of, dumbass. And besides, you probably get enough attention because you shave your legs. Everyone seems to take notice of THAT fact...tch."

"Hey! I shave them 'cause it's sexy! It's wicked cool."

"Shaving your legs is NOT cool. The Spice Girls is cool," said Ganondorf.

"Would you guys just shut up? Neither of you have an accurate perception of what's cool! Now let's go back to the manor -- Majora's probably waiting," said Agahnim. With that, the three villains disappeared.

* * *

Link sighed and leaned against the door wearily. He hoped he didn't run into those mysterious advisors again... He put his ear against the door to see if he could hear them. They had been talking about something, but it had been in whispers. Link had then heard them walk away. Everything was silent, so he figured they were gone. 

Link's eyes traveled around the room. He could not find Tetra.

"Tetra? Are you, umm...here?"

He began to physically search. No sign of her.

Then he noticed that there was a stone archway in the room leading out to a balcony that overlooked the sea. Link quietly stepped out onto the balcony.

"Tetra, there you are!"

Tetra was sitting on the stone floor of the balcony, off to the far right side. She was hugging her knees, her head buried in them. Link approached her and touched her shoulder.

"Tetra, are you ok?" he asked.

Tetra looked up at him quickly. She looked tired and depressed, and her cheeks were wet with tears. She hurriedly wiped her hand across them, sniffled, and smiled weakly. Link noticed a bruise on her cheek.

"Oh, Link... I was wondering when you'd be back..." she said.

Link sat down next to her.

"What happened?" he asked.

"Found out my father's an asshole..." Tetra answered bitterly. She chuckled, but Link could sense her pain and see it in her eyes.

A realization hit Link (and you know how few times THAT happens!).

"Tetra, did he hit you?"

Tetra nodded sadly, looking down.

Link sighed.

_I'm one hell of a saint for doing this..._ he thought as he hugged Tetra. Tetra squeezed him so tightly in return Link felt the air leave his lungs.

"He hated my mother and he hates me!" she cried.

"What...makes you...think that...gah..." Link wheezed from her crushing grasp.

"He said he could hate me, and I said I could do the same, and he hit me..." Tetra said.

"Air..."

"Oh. Right." Tetra released Link; he took several deep breaths.

"Listen," he panted, "I'm...really sorry, Tetra. My day wasn't much better."

Tetra looked at him.

"Some 'Four Sword shrine' gypsy or whatever the fuck she was found Aryll, Bambi and I and told us to come with her. I, of course, thought they were going to rape me, so I was hesitant. But she just grabbed me, Aryll, and Bambi and took us to her shrine anyway. When we got there, she introduced me to her three sisters. They were all, like...discolored. One was blue, one was purple, one was red, and the other was green. Then they started saying that Bambi's mother and my mother were their sisters. And they weren't lying... So then I found out Bambi and I were cousins. But then they said that my parents were murdered by my grandmother. They said that she...they said she chopped their heads off with an ax. If only I had known..." Link said. Silence followed.

"I'm sorry, Link..." Tetra said.

"Me too..." Link grumbled. The two lovers watched the starry night sky in quiet.

* * *

"Ugh..." Link groaned as he awoke. Tetra, who had been sleeping in Link's arms, woke up too. Someone was knocking on their door. 

"Come in..." Tetra called. An elderly servant woman stepped in.

"Nick! Jessica! I just loved the new season of your show!" she crowed.

Link sat up.

"Are you senile?" he asked.

"It is an honor to get to meet you, Nick Lachey! But I must celebrate later, for young Master Ralph as requested your presence in the throne room!"

She turned to Tetra and said, "I think you are to be knighted, Jessica Simpson! How joyous! Well, I'm off to see about some reindeer!" The old lady bounded out of the room.

"Who's Ralph?" Tetra asked, turning to Link.

Link shrugged and got out of bed.

"I'unno, could be anyone..." he grumbled, getting dressed and washed up and stuff. Tetra copied. They both decided to go to the throneroom, as the old, senile servant may have had some motive for disturbing them.

At last, they were ready to go. Link extended his arm to Tetra.

"Ready to get knighted, Jessica Simpson?"

Tetra smirked and took his arm.

"Of course, Nick Lachey...that would 'take my breath away'!"

They left the room.

As they walked the halls, Tetra leading the way, Link remembered last night's ordeal with the incognito advisors. He decided to bring up the subject.

"Tetra..." he began. "Last night, I couldn't find the room, and I was about to sleep in the hall, but then..."

Tetra looked at him.

"But what, Link?"

"I was just sitting there when this guy came out. He was dressed in all black, and had a cloak on so I couldn't see his face. All I saw was that he had silver hair. His voice sounded really familiar, Tetra..."

Tetra's heart skipped a beat. Familiar voice, silver hair... That sounded a lot like --

"But that's not all! He asked me if I was lost, so I was all like, 'yeah, I am', and then he's all like, 'oh, well I can help you find where you're going'. And then these other two cloaked, disguised dudes come out. They were both fat guys, too. And one of them sounded familiar also, but the other one's voice I did not recognize," Link said.

A prickle ran down Tetra's spine at the mention of a fat guy with a familiar voice...

"Link, did you ask for their names?"

"They wouldn't tell me. They just lead me to our room. They were really mean, too!"

"Pike's right... Something really wrong is happening..." Tetra murmured.

"She told me she wanted to see us today. Maybe it has something to do with all this wacky shit that's been going on?"

"Maybe..."

* * *

Link and Tetra entered the throne room. Its only occupants were Pike, Aryll, and Bambi. Arnav was nowhere to be seen. 

"There you are!" Pike said. "Did you, uh...sleep well?"

Link and Tetra shrugged. Yesterday's experiences had haunted their dreams.

"Big brother!" Aryll exclaimed, running up to Link and latching on to his legs.

Link groaned with annoyance.

"Hi...Aryll..." he grunted.

"Now that everyone's here, there is something I must show you. Follow me," said Pike, exiting the room. Link, Bambi, Tetra, and Aryll followed.

Pike lead them to what must have been the basement. She shut the heavy doors behind them, and descended the long, dank stone steps. At last, the group reached the bottom. Link, Tetra, and Bambi gasped.

The basement was a large, circular room. It was similar to Hyrule Castle's basement, only larger. Mysterious stained glass pictures covered every wall. There were some wooden benches placed here and there, too. In the middle of the room sat a circular stone platform, on top of which was what looked like a treasure chest.

"Welcome to the basement," Pike said, stepping onto the platform.

"Basement? This place looks more like a church! It's beautiful!" Bambi exclaimed.

Pike let off a small smile.

"It's sort of the royal family's secret room. Few know about it, but those that do usually don't venture down here. It is only I who makes regular visits to this place," she said.

"Boogeymen live in basements," Aryll said in a matter-of-fact tone.

"Why did you bring us down here?" Link asked suspiciously.

Pike didn't answer him for a while. She just walked to one of the many stained-glass pictures, stared at it, and put a hand on it. This particular picture depicted five boys who eerily resembled Link. One was wearing green, one purple, another red, and the other blue. The last boy looked like Dark Link -- Linkish except for a black outfit, black hair, and red eyes. Each was holding a strange weapon.

Standing next to the boys was a girl with tan skin and fairy short very pale blonde hair. She was wearing a peach-colored, elaborately embroidered outfit that looked like something a warrior would wear. She too held a weapon.

There was another girl in the picture, though she was away and off to the side. It looked like Zelda... Her hands were outstretched, for she too held a weapon. A knife, to be exact. Another strange thing about her was that she was visibly pregnant.

Pike began to speak.

"Legend has it that a long time ago, a wind sorcerer whose full name was said to be Vaati Gufuu wreaked havoc on the ancient land of Hyrule. Then one day, a hero wielding a sword that split his body into four vanquished him. Vaati was sealed inside that sword, known as the Four Sword. The Four Sword was then laid to rest.

A hundred or so years after that, the princess of Hyrule, Zelda, was taken by a dark shadow. Her best friend, another young boy, pulled the Four Sword from its pedestal out of desperation, and was split into four beings.

However, each boy was like a separate person. The sword had birthed four from one, mysteriously. That was something that was not supposed to have happened.

Regardless, the four boys defeated Vaati Gufuu, and rescued Princess Zelda. However, when the Four Sword was placed back in its pedestal, the four-who-were-one remained four. Four separate boys... But despite that, everything was peaceful...for a few months.

They say that deep within a forest lived an ancient tribe called Ny-Potho. Ny-Potho was ruled by the beautiful Queen Daray, who had one son, a boy named Braeden.

Daray created a dark object called the Majora's Mask. It specialized in black magic, and that was what the Ny-Pothons used it for, for they were an evil tribe.

But they had one member who was not so evil -- a girl named Missy, who was training to become a tribe warrior." Pike pointed to the girl in the picture with the tan skin, blonde hair, and peach outfit. "Missy was a sort of half-breed -- half human, half Hylian. The tribe made her a misfit. Missy was about twelve or thirteen, the same age as Braeden. The two were said to have never gotten along, mind you.

One day, a ritual using the Majora's Mask went terribly wrong, and a deceased villain from the Four Sword mission was ressurected." Pike gestured to the stained glass Dark Link type kid.

"The tribe became fearful by the fact that their mask had brought something evil back from the dead. Deciding it was too much power, they decided to destroy the. They also ordered the abomination to be killed.

This 'abomination', as it turns out, was no longer evil, having committed a deed of righteousness before its death. It went by the name of Shadow. Missy met Shadow, and realized that he posed no threat -- he was too sickly, as the mask had done a rough job on his ressurection. She did not want him to be killed, and decided to help him escape Ny-Potho.

Meanwhile, Braeden did not want the mask to be destroyed. He stole it, and blamed it on Missy. The Ny-Pothons ordered Missy to be killed along with the dark creature, but he and she escaped. Not long after, Braeden disappeared himself.

Braeden was quite the young magician. Quite possibly, he knew more about magic than Daray did. With the mask as a power source, Prince Braeden left for Hyrule. He was on a quest for unimagineable power and immortality. The spell that would give him this called for the sacrifice of a child baring the blood of the spell's caster and the blood of the 'Princess of Light': Princess Zelda.

Braeden broke into Hyrule castle, imprisoning Zelda, whom he proceeded to impregnate." Pike gestured to the depiction of the pregnant Zelda in the stained glass picture.

She continued, "Braeden enslaved the people of Hyrule, and cast darkness and terror everywhere.

Meanwhile, Missy and Shadow were angered by Braeden's lies, and decided to set out and kill him. On the way, they met the Four Sword heroes, and the group banded together to form a team to stop Braeden and save Zelda, and though they didn't know it yet, her unborn child needed saving too.

To defeat Braeden, each member of the group created a weapon, so there were six weapons in all. These were called the Tools of the Gods. The weapons were..."

Pike pointed to the boy in green. "The Wind Cane..." She pointed to the red boy. "The Fire Sword." Pike gestured to the blue one. "The Water Katana." Next, she pointed to the kid in purple (_How queer_, Link thought). "The Earth Staff." Pike nodded to the picture of 'Shadow'. "The Dark Bow..." And lastly, she pointed to the Missy girl. "And the Light Cutlass."

Pike turned to look at the picture of the pregnant Zelda holding the dagger.

"Rumor has it that seventh 'God Tool' was created by Princess Zelda during her imprisonment. It was said to have been called 'Zelda's Dagger'. No one is sure if it actually existed, though.

Anyway, using the Tools of the Gods, the six defeated Braeden, but for some reason, were unable to destroy the Majora's Mask."

Pike turned all the way around to face Link, Tetra, Bambi, and Aryll.

"Well...that's just my introduction," she said, walking back towards them. Pike opened the chest on the platform.

"That is one of the famous legends of Oceana. Anyway...there is a prayer in our churches called 'The Prophecy'. Some say it is the instructions for saving the world some day. I believe that. To be exact, I think it is the instruction for saving the world from what is about to come. It is said to have been written by one of the children who created the God Tools." Pike pulled an old, dusty book from the chest and flipped to a book marked page.

"This is the Prophecy:

_To smite the moonlight's lover_

_Thou must thwart those who are unpure_

_He who drains the night's day_

_The children of darkness will come forth_

_To lend aid to those true_

_To lay hand on the six Tools of the Gods_

_To help small girls find their way_

_Look for their red blood amongst the black_

_Seven heinous souls_

_One who reigns_

_Four who are weak-minded_

_And two who come forth to do what the gods see right_

_Spare the two_

_And leave all else to die_

_Unlock the door for he_

_Who is one, become four_

_Using time's key, save a boy and his lover_

_Then hurry to the church as the sky rains blood_

_Or else all will be gone for good_."

Ummm...what the fuck does that mean?" Link asked.

Pike shut the book.

"No one knows for sure. I can interpret some of it, though. For instance, we know that the six Tools of the Gods will have some role to play. I think 'to smite the moonlight's lover' has something to do with the Majora's Mask, as there is another legend about the mask involving the moon, but I won't get into that. 'Who is one, become four' obviousy applies to the Four Sword, which we still have to this day. And 'time's key'... I hold a sacred instrument known as the Ocarina of Time. I think that is what the 'time's key' is. And the church...perhaps it means one of the many churches we have in Oceana, as they're quite sacred. But raining blood...and 'darkness children'...I don't know what things like that apply to, but they certainly don't sound good."

Pike sighed and put the book back.

"My husband-to-be's name is Majora, and in some way, I feel he is connected to that mask. I just met him a few days ago... He brought two twin boys with him, claiming that they were his sons from a previous marriage. The boys' names were Shadow and Dark." Pike looked to the stained glass picture she had previously used as a reference, and pointed to the Shadow in the picture. "They looked like him, but I know they aren't him."

But then Pike turned back to Link, looking very serious.

"And they looked like you."

Link's blood ran cold.

Shadow...that was the name of the creature in the prophecy, yet the two Shadows were not the same. One was good, but what about the other one...? And Dark... Dark Link. Link's dark self. And now it sounded like he had two dark selves...

"Shadow and Dark are evil, and I know Majora is too. They were staying for dinner the other day, but the twins disappeared. I found them in my bedroom, where they were, uh...doing things I will not discuss. But they hinted to me that Majora was planning something, something bad... The Prophecy has haunted my dreams for many nights now, and I think it is time for it to play its role in the world."

"Wow...this...this is a lot..." Tetra said softly. Pike bit her lip and nodded.

"Tetra, for some reason, Majora wants you here. He's coming over later -- daddy won't mention you I'm sure, and I won't mention you. Just stay hidden."

Tetra nodded. But then she remembered something.

"Pike, I've been having weird dreams too... Well...in the Prophecy, it said something about a sky raining blood... In my dream, the sky rains blood. I see a boy that looks like him --" Tetra pointed to the Shadow picture. "Turning into a wolf or getting tortured, and a girl turning into a tiger. I see a man...handsome --"

"HEY!" Link snapped.

"Shut up, Link! Anyway...a...a handsome man...long black hair...purple eyes...fair skin..."

"That's Majora," Pike said suddenly.

"Then it's settled. I don't doubt your words about the Prophecy, sis...but what are we gonna do?" Tetra asked.

"As I said before, my father is holding an engagement party for this stupid arranged marriage. He invited you, but don't go. But...since you are expected, we'll get someone to disguise as you and go to the party, should Majora try something... But who could do it...?"

All eyes turned to Bambi.

"M-me? Oh, no, no, no, no... Please...not me..." Bambi begged, her eyes widening.

"Bambi, please... You could look almost just like me in Princess Zelda form. If we straightened your hair and gave you the dress, you could disguise as me looking formal!" Tetra said.

"But I don't know what Majora will do to me!" Bambi squeaked.

"Relax, he wouldn't want Tetra here just to kill her! We'll make sure nothing bad happens to you," Pike promised.

_I really am too generous..._ Bambi thought.

She sighed and said, "Fine...I'll do it..."

"Thank you, Bambi!" Tetra said, hugging her.

"Princess Pike, your father requests your presence in the throne room," said the messenger, bowing. He must have slipped in while the kids weren't paying attention.

"Majora must be here..." Pike said grimly.

"All of you, stay out of sight, please..."

And then she left, leaving Link, Bambi, Tetra, and Aryll alone in the basement.

* * *

When Pike entered the throne room, Majora and Arnav were talking cheerfully. Dark and Shadow were not with Majora today -- they were replaced by a teenage girl about fifteen or sixteen years old. She was obviously of Gerudo descent, with tan skin, red hair, and pretty green eyes. She was dressed like one, too. 

Majora, Arnav, and the girl turned to look at Pike when she walked in.

"Ah, there she is, my beautiful blushing bride..." said Majora, his lips curling into a handsome smile, purple eyes flashing. The girl with him smirked.

Pike walked towards them.

"Who is this you brought with you? Your daughter?" Pike asked coldly, looking at the girl, who glared at the words.

"This, uh...my...little sister. Her name is Ciara," Majora lied.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Your Highness..." said Ciara, bowing.

"Hm. The pleasure is mine," Pike sniffed, turning sharply away from Ciara to face Majora and Arnav.

"So, beautiful... Your father was just telling me that your twin sister came to visit," said Majora. "Is she as pretty as you?"

Pike looked at her father in surprise. He thought he'd be too ashamed to tell. She wondered if he had been drinking earlier... Judging by his flushed look and alcohol smell, he had.

"Yes...yes, she has come," Pike said slowly, looking at Majora.

"How splendid. She can come to our little engagement party, now can't she?" said Majora.

"You'll see her there," Pike said stiffly.

"Excellent..." Majora said to himself, smirking. Pike heard those words though...

* * *

A few hours after Pike had left to see Majora, Aryll grew bored and escaped the basement when Link, Tetra, and Bambi weren't looking. She wanted to explore the castle, hoping to find another spidery-ant, perhaps. 

Spotting a piece of lint on the floor, Aryll hopped toward it to investigate. It was purple lint. However, her observations were cut short when a man and a teen girl nearly bowled into her.

"Watch where you're going, you little rat!" growled the girl.

"Ciara, my friend, be nice!" said the man with a chuckle, smirking at Aryll. He shook back his long, silky black hair, and the two walked on. Aryll decided to follow them secretly...

She followed them out of the castle. They stopped a little ways outside it. Aryll hid behind a bush to watch...

"So her sister DID come!" hissed the girl excitedly.

"Yes, and you know what that means -- both halves of the Light Force are within grasp. The plan is that we're going to seize Pike and her sister during the engagement party, and hold them prisoner until the night comes when we can extract the Light Force! Oceana and the world will be mine!" exclaimed the man.

"Majora, you have a great mind. Can we have se --"

"Sorry, I cannot hear you over my genius, Ciara. Come, let us return to the manor. Agahnim, Ganondorf, Vaati, Shadow, and Dark will be eager to hear the news," said Majora, walking over to a horse drawn carriage. Ciara sighed disappointedly and followed.

Whatever they had been talking about, it sure sounded evil, in Aryll's opinion. She shrugged and decided to go find that piece of lint again. Maybe she would tell her big brother later...if she felt like it.


	6. The Engagement Party

_**In Hidden Fire, there was the basic find a sage -- do the dungeon -- kill the boss kind of layout. This story is 100 unpredictable, though! No dungeons. Everything happens unexpectedly, so that's a nice change, I think.**_

**_When the Fairy Queen (Or Queen Fairy, whateva) talks about Aryll being a better hero than Link someday, well...the quest that makes her the greatest hero will be in a different story. But Aryll gets a powerful role in this story, too. Our little Aryll is growing up._**

**_Hooray for descriptive sex! There will be A LOT more descriptive sex as this story progresses. Yaoi sex, too...hehe._**

**_Anyway, I hope you like this chapter. It took most of my day to write, so read!_**

**_AND REVIEW! AMEN!_**

**_And have a very merry Chrsitmas!_**

* * *

**_Best Wishes to All!_**

* * *

**_Sincerely,_**

**_Melissa AKA The Tacochickenwings_**

* * *

_**Chapter 6 -- The Engagement Party**_

Link, Pike, Tetra, and Bambi met at the pirate ship on the day of Pike's engagement party. Aryll had been left behind at the castle.

Link was the last to arrive on the ship. Grumbling, he entered his and Tetra's bedroom and immediately flipped off his shoes. The girls were already there.

"Why do I have to walk all that way from the castle to here! Can't I ride the horse again?" Link snapped at Pike.

Pike shook her head.

"No. We're not supposed to be here, and taking the horses might give us away. That's also why we had to leave at separate times -- so as not to attract attention," she explained.

Link just mumbled something and sat down on the bed next to Tetra.

Said Pike, "Ok...we have to give Bambi that makeover now."

"I'm leaving," Link said quickly, standing up. Tetra pulled him back down roughly.

"Link, this ain't one of them girly-girl makeovers! We're trying to pass off Bambi as Zelda-me, 'member?"

"Right..." Link sighed.

Tetra went to her wardrobe and pulled out the Zelda dress and accessories along with a flat iron.

"Where did you get that, Tetra? Isn't that, like...not gonna be invented for another couple thousand years?" Link asked, pointing to the flat iron.

Tetra shrugged and looked at it.

"I dunno, I just kinda found it. But hell, it's quite a stroke of luck!" She turned to Bambi.

"Ok, Bambi...are you ready?"

"Well..."

"Whatever, let's get started!"

* * *

"Wow...she looks so much like you, Tetra! Er...the Zelda-Tetra, anyway..." Link said. 

Bambi stared at herself in the mirror. Indeed, she did look quite Zelda-ish, and was most likely going to be able to pull off the character. But she had her doubts...

"What if someone knows I'm not Tetra? I mean, we have different eye color and stuff..." said Bambi.

"Who cares? You're blonde and in a dress. What more is there to Zelda?" Link asked.

"It looks pretty good. I think we can fool them. Our first priority is not to let Majora get a hold of me or my sister. I'm not being selfish; he wants us for something. It's for the good of the world. You are doing a great thing, Bambi. Thank you..." said Pike, smiling.

_Sure, thank me before you sacrifice me... _Bambi thought irritably. But despite her frustration, she turned to face the others, forced a smile, and said, "Anything for you guys."

Pike rose and let out a heavy sigh.

"We best get back. But Tetra...please...remain here. The party will start in a matter of hours. Anyway, Bambi and I will leave together. Link, wait for a little while before following us," said Pike, turning toward the door.

"Pike, wait!" said Tetra, jumping to her feet. She reached into her pocket and took out the Royal Family Gossip Stone, and shoved it into her sister's hands.

"Take this with you. High chance somethin's gonna happen, so...if I'm right, then you can contact me through this stone. Use it to let me know how things are going, too..."

Pike smiled at Tetra, and hugged her.

"I'll let you know, sis. I think we can all feel it -- the sense of dread. We can count on something going wrong at this party, unfortunately," said Pike. She glanced at Link and left.

Bambi gulped. Pike was right -- she too felt the negative foreshadowing in the air. She feared for her life, but kept quiet. Who knew what Majora was capeable of? Bambi threw Link and Tetra a weak smile before throwing a cloak over herself to mask her new look. Then she hurried out after Pike.

Tetra flopped back on her bed and snorted frustratedly.

"I'm going to be so anxious not being able to know what's going on... I'm gonna be cooped up on this ship," she said.

Link shrugged.

"Well, at least you won't be maimed or nothin'..." he said.

Tetra looked at him.

"What about you? You're in danger by going to that party. So is Pike. And Bambi...if it's found out that she's not really me, she's dog meat..." Tetra looked away sadly.

"Well, I have to go, don't I? I have the Master Sword. Pike said I might need to use it. Besides, maybe they'll have cake," Link replied.

Tetra sat up abrubtly.

"But what if you get killed?"

Link blinked.

"So?"

"Link -- if you get KILLED, you'll DIE."

"Oh..." Link said softly. He hadn't realized that if he would be killed, he would die.

"Genius," Tetra snorted, turning away.

"Oh my goddesses! Tetra, what if I die?" Link squealed.

Tetra hugged her legs to her chest and was silent for a moment.

"I don't know what will happen then, Link..." she said quietly.

Link squirmed and shuddered. The cake at the party didn't matter now. Everyone was talking as if they were all doomed, and these pessimistic views were finally starting to rub off on him.

Tetra turn around quickly and leaned over to Link.

"But you know I'll always love you, right?" she said.

Link nodded.

"I love you too, but I don't know if I'll still be able to if I'm dead or something," Link answered dully.

Tetra turned his face towards hers and kissed him. Link kissed her back. They kissed for a long time, and so it became a wet, open-mouth type kiss. Things were gettin' HOT.

Link took off Tetra's shirt. She did not object. Excitement filled Link's stomach -- he was finally going to get some REAL action! Not the hand-action he had had to resort to for quite some time.

Link rubbed Tetra's back. She smirked as she kissed him, then roughly began jerking off his clothes, piece-by-piece. Link's member was throbbing painfully at that time -- it had not taken long.

Tetra shoved Link onto the floor, ripped off the rest of her clothes, and let her long hair down.

"You've been waiting so long for this, Link," she said, grinning. "It's time for your reward. I hope you like it extra rough." And with that, she flung herself on top of him.

The two writhed about, feeling and fondling eachother. Link was growing agitated -- she was toying with him. It was just foreplay still, as they had yet to really connect.

"Tetra, let me do it! Now!" he hissed.

"Aaaahhh, not yeeeeet..." Tetra giggled tauntingly.

Link didn't understand how girls could do it. For the vast majority of guys who wanted sex, they'd go for it with no self-control. But girls...they could hold off and cut the guys off.

Tetra played with Link's hair as she moved around on top of him. Link was pleasured, yet he felt increasingly frustrated. He felt as though he would explode any second. Tetra was taking the lead. If he had, then this would be over sooner.

Link felt helpless under her, yet that fact sort of turned him on, and it obviously turned Tetra on.

Sweating like mad, he whimpered, "Tetra...PLEASE..."

"One more moment," replied Tetra, winking. She began to stroke Link's thighs. Link let out a shriek of ecstasy.

"JUST LET ME GET INSIDE YOU, DAMMIT!" he begged.

"Not yet!" Tetra said happily. She was having too great a time dominating Link, making him beg.

She started sucking on Link's neck, nipping on occasion. Link shut his eyes and gripped her shoulders firmly. She moved her head down to his chest, swirling her tongue around his nipples. Link squeaked.

"Now..." he said.

"Yes, now," Tetra said finally. A flood of amazing feeling washed over Link as they eagerly connected.

Tetra moved her hips up and down, up and down, pumping. Link shouted her name, sweating even harder.

Tetra pinned Link's wrists to the floor and pumped harder. At last, he came, and so did she. Things began to cool down.

Link smirked and looked up at her.

"I hate it when you make me wait," he pouted playfully.

Tetra pulled apart from him and grinned.

"Well, I just like dominating you, sweetie!" she said.

Link let himself relax as he stared up at the ceiling.

"That was the best sex we've had in a long time. Actually, it was the only sex we had in a long time."

"Well, you pissed me off the last time we did it. You farted right in the middle, and we started laughing. Then I coudn't come," said Tetra.

Link nodded.

"I remember that."

Tetra winked at him and started getting dressed. Link stood up, pulled a blanket out of the wardrobe, and began wiping the sweat off himself. Then he too got dressed.

When they were both dressed and looking proper, they layed on the bed and stared into space. For the first time all day, they had been relaxed. Sadly, the calm was beginning to wear off as they got back in touch with reality.

"How long have we been fucking and stuff?" Tetra asked.

"I don't know," sighed Link.

Tetra looked at Link, pain in her eyes.

"You better go..." she said sadly. With a heavy heart, Link kissed her, got up, and made for the door.

"Link..." Tetra said. He turned around.

"Yeah?"

"Watch out for Pike and Bambi. Make sure they stay safe," Tetra ordered softly.

"Do I have to watch out for Bambi?" Link groaned.

Tetra's brow furrowed slightly.

"She's your cousin. You don't need me to tell you that she deserves your respect. You're lucky to have family like Bambi and Aryll that care about you, Link."

"So? You have Pike -- she cares about you."

"But she's all I have. All I have that care, anyway..." Tetra said darkly, looking even more depressed.

Link sighed.

"Cheer up, Tetra. Pike, Bambi and I are gonna be ok. I promise I'll see you after the party," Link said. Tetra smiled.

"And watch out for the rest of the crew, too," she said.

"As long as they don't mollest me..." Link murmured to himself. He gave Tetra a calm smile, waved, and left.

Link had tried to make his last few minutes with Tetra as soothing for both of them as possible, but he most certainly wasn't calm. What would happen at the party?

* * *

Bambi stared at herself in the mirror in Link and Tetra's room. Her stomach was full of butterflies. Would she be turned to dust at the party? 

Bambi nearly jumped out of her skin as she heard the door open. Quickly, the girl spun around. A sigh of relief escaped her lips as she saw it was only Aryll.

"Oh, Aryll, it's just you..." she said.

Aryll nodded happily.

"Yup! And look -- I got new clothes!" exclaimed Link's sister, spinning around. She was indeed wearing different apparel -- a white toga and gold sandals, just like the people of Oceana.

"You look very pretty, Aryll," said Bambi, smiling.

"So do you! You look just like Zelda! And that dress makes your boobs look less pointy," said Aryll.

"Ummm...thanks..." said Bambi.

"You're welcome."

Bambi remembered something. She kneeled down in front of Aryll.

"Aryll, are you going to the party?"

Aryll looked hurt.

"No...I'm not allowed..." she said sadly.

"Good," Bambi said, standing up. Aryll glared.

"I'm not a baby. I should be allowed to go," she huffed, crossing her arms.

"No, Aryll...it's very dangerous."

"So?"

Bambi looked out the window, her anxiety increasing. She sighed deeply.

"People are going to get hurt, Aryll..." she said, swallowing nervously. "I'm sure of it..."

* * *

"Please, dad, listen to me! If the worst happens, we have to be ready!" Pike begged her father. 

King Arnav sat on his throne, looking at Pike with great annoyance.

"Pike, you're being ridiculous. You've been at this argument for days! Majora wants your hand in marriage for practical reasons, those being the benefit of both our kingdoms!"

"He is no king! He wants Tetra and I for something awful!"

"Majora is up to no twisted plots, my child! Stop being foolish. He claims to be a king, therefore, he is. He's a good, honest man," said Arnav with a tone of finality.

Pike wasn't ready to give up just yet, however.

"What about what his so-called 'sons' said to me in my bedroom?"

"It was your imagination. I'm sure you just had too much to drink during dinner, hon."

"I don't drink! And I wasn't the drunk one, you and Majora were!" Pike snapped.

The door to the throne room opened loudly, and Majora strode in with his usual air of royal gusto.

"Hello, hello!" he said, walking over to the king and princess and flashing Pike one of his sexy smiles.

Pike was surprised to see him so early. She looked at her father with an expression of outraged question. Arnav gazed back at her seriously.

"I agreed to let Majora come here to get ready for the party," he said slowly.

"Oh. Magnificent," said Pike in a sickly-sweet tone, turning to Majora with an obnoxiously fake smile. Majora noticed, but he just smiled sincerely. However, his purple eyes flashed with a certain menace.

"This is such a wonderful castle. I love coming here to see you. I can't wait to meet your sister tonight."

"Of course," said Pike dryly, leaving the throne room.

"Pike, you best get ready," Arnav called.

"Certainly, father," said Pike, throwing a glare over her shoulder.

* * *

Link walked through the halls of the palace, still despressed and pessimistic from the gloomy feel in the air. He passed by Pike bedroom. Link nearly shit his pants as her door opened, and Pike peeked her head out. 

"Link...come in for a moment..." she said.

"You aren't naked in there, are you?" Link asked. Pike shook her head, so Link shrugged and walked into the bedroom.

"Soooo...what's up, princess?"

Pike walked over to her dresser and took a blue ocarina off the top of it. She walked over to Link and placed it in his hands.

"I want you to keep this."

Link looked at her suspciously.

"Is this the Ocarina of Time thing you talked about? Why do you want me to have it?"

"My heart told me to give it to you. To use its magic, you must listen to your own heart. This ocarina can do miracles. It has in the past, and according to the Prophecy, it will now. Now...I have one more thing to give you."

Pike took a scroll off her bedside table and also gave it to Link. Link unrolled it: it had the Prophecy written on it.

"Don't forget the Prophecy, Link. It's important. I have to get ready soon, but first, I'd like to go talk to the maidens... I'll see you at the party." Pike turned and left the room.

Link stared at the scroll and the ocarina a moment before pocketing them and leaving the bedroom himself.

* * *

Pike strode down another one of the many hallways towards the nearest castle exit. She stopped herself when she heard voices... Majora was speaking to someone around the corner. 

"We strike tonight. We'll nab both girls, and the Light Force will be ours! We must slaughter all who oppose us. The Prophecy will not be fulfilled! We'll take this town and this castle! And as for the animal-transformation abilities I have gifted you and your fellows...use them wisely. They will come in handy tonight. And when you return to the mansion, Agahnim, tell Shadow to stop abusing his transformation-power and usin' it to get away with crappin' on the floor!"

"Yes sir," said Agahnim obediently. Pike heard footsteps heading towards the same exit that was her destination. Pike waited for a while, then proceeded to the stables, thinking as she walked.

So it was true: terrible things would happen at the party. Pike quickened her pace.

* * *

Bambi paced around Link and Tetra's bedroom, biting her bottom lip. Link sat on the bed, Aryll on his lap. 

"Relax, will you! You're making me more nervous!" Link snapped.

"I can't help it!" Bambi cried.

Aryll looked cross.

"I want to go to the party!" she whined. "I wanna see what happens!"

"I told you Aryll, it's too dangerous! You're too young," Link scolded.

Aryll angrily leapt off Link's lap and stormed out of the room. Link sighed exasperatedly and rolled his eyes.

"Aryll, I'm only doing what's best for you!"

Aryll ignored him and kept walking.

Link's little sister made her way to her bedroom. She'd go to that party anyway. She would find out the cause of everyone's unease...and put a stop to it.

Meanwhile, Bambi continued to pace around, much to to the irritated Link's annoyance. But his cousin stopped short her pacing as the door opened, and a short, balding messenger man entered the room.

"The king requests your presence in the ballroom, sir and madam. The party has started." The messenger turned to Bambi and smiled kindly.

"Ah, Princess Tetra...you really do look lovely. Much less scruffy than you did before." Then he hurried away.

"Remember your role. BE Tetra," Link hissed to Bambi, holding out his arm. Bambi gulped, nodded, and took Link's arm. Together they headed for the ballroom, and on their way, were joined by Pike as she hurried out of her bedroom.

"Are you ready?" the Oceanan princess asked grimly. Link and Bambi nodded solemnly, and Pike took Link's other arm. With a girl on each side, Link lead them to the party. Pike whispered to them what she had overheard Majora saying, and warned them to be even more cautious...

* * *

The ballroom was already full. It seemed that just about everyone in Oceana was there. Women, children, men, elderly, mentally retarted... The room alone was packed, and there were even more people outside. 

Everyone got quiet and turned around as Link, Bambi, and Pike arrived. The three descended the stairs, with Bambi looking at her feet nervously. She was recieving many stares.

Pike lead them to the other end of the room toward a few thrones where Majora and Arnav were seated. People bowed as they passed. Bambi heard people whispering about her...

Arnav and Majora rose when the trio approached. Arnav looked dark and serious, but Majora wore his usual smile. He kneeled before Pike and kissed her hand.

"You do look gorgeous this evening, love..." he said. Pike wrinkled her nose in disgust.

Majora turned to look at Bambi. His smile widened.

"Well, well, is this that sister I've been hearing so much about?"

"Yes," said Pike.

Majora kissed Bambi's hand.

"Quite a pleasure, Your Highness, quite a pleasure..." Bambi glanced at Pike nervously.

"My name is Link. Please don't kiss my hand," said Link.

"Oh. Lovely," said Majora unenthusiastically.

"Let's go to the refreshment table, Link," hissed Bambi.

"Is there cake?" Link asked.

"Yeah, yeah, sure," said Bambi quickly, growing more uncomfortable by the second under Majora's unwavering stare.

Link allowed Bambi to drag him to the refreshment table.

"Excuse me, but I need to go to the ladies' room..." said Pike, walking off to the bathroom. Majora smirked as he watched her leave.

* * *

Link shoved pastry after pastry into his mouth. 

"Link...look...there are people in cloaks...looks suspicious," Bambi whispered.

Link looked up, his mouth full of brownies. Bambi was right -- there were suspicious people in cloaks. Six of them, to be exact. Link's blood ran cold when he thought he saw one of the "advisors" from a few nights ago. The man in the cloak with the silver hair falling down his shoulders...

He swallowed his food.

"That's pretty weird...watch out for 'em." Bambi sighed.

Link let out a shriek as he felt someone grab his ass. He spun around and found Gonzo grinning at him. Niko, Senza, Mako, and Nudge walked up to them too.

"This party's greeeeaaaaat..." said Mako drunkly, waving around a glass of wine. Its contents sloshed everywhere.

"Yeah...yeah, sure..." Link said slowly, gazing at Gonzo warily.

No one noticed Aryll watching them from behind a large potted plant...

* * *

Pike hustled to the far corner of the bathroom and took Tetra's Gossip Stone out of her purse. She wasn't quite sure how to use it, and decided to just guess. 

"Um...Tetra?" she whispered to the stone. The rock began to glow abrubtly.

"Pike!" rang Tetra's voice. "What's going on?"

"Nothing yet. But Majora has six recruits scattered about the party," said Pike.

"Where's Link?" Tetra asked. "Is he ok?"

"He's fine. He's at the refreshment table with Bambi."

"And is she ok?"

"Nervous, but still on her feet," Pike said with a chuckle and a smile.

Pike heard footsteps entering the bathroom.

"Someone's coming -- gotta go," the Oceanan princess said quickly before stuffing the stone back into her purse.

The only female member of Majora's gang walked in, cloaked like the others. She turned her head to Pike.

"Well, greetings princess," she said. Pike assumed it was that Ciara girl.

"Hello," said Pike, leaning against the wall casually.

"Is everything alright?" Ciara asked.

"Fine," Pike answered stiffly. Ciara snickered and disappeared into one of the stalls. Pike quickly left the bathroom.

When Pike was gone, Ciara exited the stall, walked out of the bathroom, and hurried away through the crowd to Majora, who was in conversation with Arnav.

"AHEM..." fake-coughed the Gerudo girl to Majora.

"Ah, yes, hello," said Majora, turning to Ciara.

"A word, please..." whispered Ciara.

"Yes, yes, of course," said Majora. He said to Arnav, "Be back in a flash, good sir!" before following Ciara to a dark corner of the room.

"That Pike is up to something. I think she's on to us," Ciara said darkly.

Majora rolled his eyes.

"Well, no DUH! She's been on to us the moment she laid eyes on me."

"When do we start the attack, Majora?"

"When I tell you we do. I'll let you know, and you send out the signal. I'll nab Pike, and you and Shadow will get Tetra while in your animal forms. Then we'll take over the castle and town."

Ciara nodded and hurried away.

* * *

"You know, these little tart things are quite good," commented Senza as he and the other male pirates joined Link in the pastry-feast. Bambi rolled her eyes. 

Suddenly, one of the cloaked people walked up to the refreshment table to get a drink. Bambi studied him -- male figure, young...about her age. The cloaked boy raised his eyes to Bambi, and they gazed at eachother a moment. Bambi's spine prickled.

"'Ay! I's one o' 'em freak people!" Link announced through a full mouth, pointing at the boy.

The boy chuckled.

"Yeah, well, your hair has lots of split ends," he said.

Link's eyes welled up with tears. He dropped the pastries he was holding and ran into the men's room, crying.

"Link, wait!" cried Nudge. He and the other guy pirates followed.

"Guys, stop...!" called Bambi desperately. But it was of no use.

She turned to look nervously at the cloaked kid, who shifted uneasily under her stare and walked away. Bambi stood at the refreshment table, ever alone, her heart pounding nervously. She nearly screamed when a voice whispered, "Bambi!"

Bambi turned to face Aryll.

"Aryll! You're not supposed to be here!" she said sternly.

"I came anyway," sniffed Aryll, sticking her nose in the air and putting her hands on her hips.

Bambi kneeled down.

"Aryll, you shouldn't be here..."

"I want to know why everyone's so upset!" said Aryll.

Bambi sighed. Aryll would have to find out eventually...

"Have you seen the man with the long black hair and purple eyes?" she asked. Aryll nodded.

"Yeah. He's planning to kidnap Pike and Tetra at this party so he can get something called, uh...what was it? Light Force? Oh yeah...and he said he's going to take over Oceana," said Aryll. Bambi blinked.

"How do you know this, Aryll?"

Aryll shrugged.

"I overheard him talking to a girl about it while I was looking for spidery ants and lint!"

Bambi nodded.

"Now...Pike and I are in danger... I am disguised as Tetra/Zelda so Tetra doesen't get hurt, and so Majora can't carry out his plan. But Pike and I aren't the only ones in trouble. He might hurt a lot of people tonight. Judging by the things you and Pike overheard him saying, he's going to get really nasty, Aryll." Then she thought of something.

Gripping the younger girl's shoulders, Bambi said seriously, "Aryll, when it comes down to it, none of us are safe. There are other towns -- I want you to go to the stable, get a horse, and leave this place."

"What?"

"Aryll, get out of here. I want you to be safe," said Bambi, looking at Aryll with pleading eyes. "Now go to the stable."

"What about my big brother?"

"You'll see him soon. I...I'll make sure he finds you. But leave for your own sake, and stay safe," said Bambi. "Now go!"

Aryll turned and hurried off to the stable. Bambi sighed. Aryll was her cousin, yet she was more like a little sister. People were going to die, and Bambi didn't want Aryll to be one of them...

* * *

Pike looked up at the large clock on the wall of the ballroom. She had been there for about an hour, and decided it was time to leave. 

Pike had planned to leave early. She already had a horse waiting with a saddle bag containing basic nessecities -- she had to escape Majora. She would take Bambi with her.

The princess looked around for her friend, but couldn't find her in the mass of people. She walked to the stairs that lead to the grand doors of the ballroom, hoping that by climbing them, she would be able to spot Bambi.

Majora watched Pike climb the stairs. Ciara stood at his side.

He whispered to her, "I'm going to have a dance with the princess...when I'm done, send out the signal." Ciara grinned and nodded.

"Princess! Princess Pike!" called Majora, walking towards the stairs. People turned to look at him as he passed.

Pike, who had not spotted Bambi, turned to look at Majora, disgust welling up inside her.

"We're going to get married, princess! Don't you think it best we dance to celebrate the impending occasion?"

Pike swallowed. All eyes were on her and Majora, and people were beginning to chant "dance!".

"I'm not feeling well," lied Pike. But two giggling teenage girls trotted out of the crowd and to the princess, forcing her to Majora. Before she could get away, Majora had her in his grasp. The music changed, and unwillingly, Pike began to dance with him.

Angry, she whispered, "I know what you're up to, Majora..."

Majora laughed airily.

"Of course you do. I figured you did..." he replied.

"You will never get away with it..."

"Oh, I think I will... All who oppose me will perish, you see," said Majora, moving part of his cape away to reveal a shiny dagger in its hilt. Pike's eyes widened a little.

"Is that a threat?"

Majora grinned.

"A smart little thing, you are."

Pike glared.

"My side is stronger than yours... I have friends with me. I have a sister and the maidens."

"Tch...maidens. What good can they do you? A couple of odd-colored women don't sound very scary to me," scoffed Majora.

"I'd be wary of them if I were you," hissed Pike. "They are strong -- we will defeat you."

Majora thought... Perhaps the maidens issue needed his attention too. He would take care of them later...

After a few minutes, the song ended. Majora turned to look and see if he could spot Ciara. When his guard was down, Pike wrenched herself free of his grasp and rushed off through the crowd. Her destination? The door.

"HEY!" barked Majora, setting off after her. But her ran into a particularly burly man on his way.

"'AY! YOU GOT SOME KIND OF PROBLEM, PUNK?" snapped the man, jabbing Majora in the chest with his finger. Majora looked around -- Pike was gone, already off to escape.

"DAMMIT!" he cursed, killing the man using his magic. Some people gasped and turned around.

Ciara sent out her signal -- a bird call.

Bambi bustled through the crowd nervously, trying to find Pike and Link. Had Link even come out of the bathroom yet, she wondered? She stopped when she heard a roar and the howl of a wolf. Apparently, she wasn't the only one who had heard the out-of-place animal noises. Other people were stopping and looking around too.

Screams of bloody murder rang out as the ballroom doors burst open, revealing a tiger and a wolf. The two creatures snarled, howled, and growled, and sprang into the crowd, attacking people at random.

"LET'S HAVE A LITTLE FUN!" yelled Majora from the middle of the crowd. Four of the cloaked figures howled with laughter and removed their identity-masking apparel. These four were Vaati, Agahnim, Ganondorf, and Dark. Ciara and Shadow were nowhere to be seen... The villains proceeded to kill all they could, and blasted down walls of the room. The screaming increased.

Bambi herself was screaming.

"LINK! PIKE!" she cried desperately, pushing her way through the crowd of panicked Oceanans. But her scream became the loudest of all when the wolf and the tiger leapt at her. The wolf painfully gripped her left arm in its teeth, and the tiger, her right. Together, they dragged the screaming, flailing young girl towards one of the broken down walls.

Bambi's vision blurred. It didn't feel real. Her extreme pain dulled and became nothing as she slipped out of conciousness... The last thing she heard before fainting was the laughter of Majora and his gang as they destroyed and slaughtered everyone and everything around...

* * *

"Link...come out of the bathroom. You don't have any split ends..." sighed Senza. Link had locked himself in one of the stalls. 

"Yes I do!" he sobbed.

"You have very pretty hair, Link..." commented Gonzo seductively.

Link continued to cry.

"There's cake out here," Niko said.

Link sniffled.

"Really?"

"Hic...and beer..." slurred Mako. Link got out of the stall and wiped his eyes.

"Where's the cake?" he asked.

"Uuuhhh...outside," said Nudge. Link shrugged and left the bathroom. The other pirates followed him, but everyone stood stock still with shock as they saw what had become of the ballroom.

The place was blackened and singed. The walls were torn down, and bloodied corpses lay everywhere. The night sky hovered ominous and cloudy.

"W...what happend?" Link gasped.

"So that's what all that noise outside the bathroom was," said Niko.

Gonzo turned to look at the bathroom.

"Woah. The men's room is the only thing that stayed intact!" he said.

"WHERE'S ALL THE ALCOHOL?" screamed Mako.

The guys jumped as they heard a noise: footsteps.

"WHO'S THERE?" shouted Link, drawing his sword.

"It's me!" cried Tetra, running towards them. She ran into Link's arms, and he hugged her tightly.

"I came as fast as I could!"

Tetra looked around.

"Look at this place..."

"Oh, crap...Pike...Bambi...and Aryll!" said Link.

"Relax, Pike's ok. She contacted me from a town east of here -- we must find her."

Tetra looked down.

"But Bambi...and Aryll...I just don't know..."

Link's insides turned to ice.

* * *

Excited murmuring...that was the first thing Bambi heard as she slowly regained conciousness. Her vision began to come back, and she found herself laying in a soft bed in a dark, dingy old room. Then she felt the sharp pains in her body and winced. Memories of the horrific party flooded back to her. 

Then she realized the murmuring had stopped, and looked to the middle of the room to see six people staring at her. The sight of them made her gasp with shock, for she knew who many of these were.

The first one was Vaati. This was probably the most shocking. How could he still be alive? She, Link, and Tetra had killed him...

Then there was Ciara, a girl whom she had grown up with on Windfall, and had always hated. What was Ciara doing there?

She recognized Ganondorf. Though she had only seen him briefly when she had accidentally brought him to the surface world, she would never forget his face (Briefly mentioned in Hidden Fire and Bambi's Story, which isn't out yet).

Then there were two boys who looked like twins... They would be identical to Link, had they not had black hair, red eyes, and black tunics. While Bambi had been possessed by Vaati, she was a mere soul existing in her own body without control, yet she could see all that Vaati saw. She recognized one of the boys...Dark Link. The other looked just like him, yet the airs about them were so different that she could easily tell them apart.

The last person was a man she didn't recognize... Fat, pale grayish skin...no one she had ever seen before.

"We got her! We got Princess Zelda!" exclaimed Dark's twin.

Bambi looked at all the triumphant faces. Her disguise had even Vaati and Ganondorf fooled. But then she and Dark met eachother's gaze...and Bambi's heart fell when a look of surprise lit his features. He recognized her, Bambi realized. She waited for him to say something, but he did not. His gaze softened and he blushed slightly before looking away.

At that moment, Majora entered the room and smirked at Bambi.

"Well, look. It's Tetra...Zelda...whoever the hell you are," he chuckled. Everyone but Dark chuckled with him. Bambi glared and sat up. If he was going to kill her, then she would not go down looking weak, pathetic, and cowardly.

Majora's eyes fell upon the deep wounds in her arms.

"Looks like Ciara and Shadow nicked you pretty bad," he said, grinning. Ciara and Dark's twin, who Bambi assumed was Shadow, giggled.

"What are you saying?" Bambi barked.

"Ooh, what a wily little girl you are," said Majora.

"Well, you see," he explained, "I have given each of my servants here the ability to change into one animal. Shadow and Ciara did just that, and that's how we took you away."

Bambi glanced at Dark for a second before looking back at Majora, her eyes full of fire.

"Don't worry -- you won't be lonely for long. We do intend to track down your escaped sister and bring her here..." said Majora dryly.

_So Pike escaped... _Bambi thought with relief.

"On the right day, we will extract the Light Force from you and Pike. Then I will have absolute power!"

"Light Force?"

"Ppht...I don't need to explain that to you," snorted Majora, leaving the room.

"Take her to the basement cage," he called over his shoulder. Bambi's throat went dry with fear as Vaati and Ganondorf seized her by the arms and dragged her away, making sure to hold her tightly on the spots where her wounds were worst.

* * *

Link, Tetra, and the other pirates finally arrived in the town where Pike was hiding. It was about 1 AM now. The journey hadn't taken as long as it could have though, for the pirates had gone on horseback since the stable and the horses did not see Majora's wrath. 

"She told me she would be in the bar..." said Tetra. At last, they reached the bar, dismounted, and entered.

"Pike?" Tetra called.

"Over here..." said a voice. The pirates rushed to the corner of the bar and found Pike sitting at a table, cloaked. She pushed down the hood of the cloak and gazed at them with sad eyes.

"Is the damage bad?" she asked in a cracked voice, her eyes teary. Tetra nodded solemnly.

"It's hard to believe all that damage happened so soon..." said Senza.

Pike stood up suddenly.

"The maidens!" she exclaimed.

"Huh?"

"The maidens! We have to go to the Four Sword Shrine and see if they're ok!" Pike fled from the bar, and the others followed her.

"But we've been traveling for so long, and it's 1 AM!" whined Niko.

"Shut up, Niko! Pike is right!" hissed Tetra as she and her sister mounted their steeds. The boys reluctantly copied, and off they went, riding once more.

The group's pace was quick, so they reached the shrine in about an hour. Link sat in a fog of worry and exhaustion the whole time, not fully aware of his surroundings.

When they arrived at the Four Sword Shrine, Pike jumped off the horse and ran inside with Tetra not far behind. The males went more slowly, of course.

The party stared in horror at the sight before them -- the maidens were gone. Blood was spattered everywhere. A barrier of black magic surrounded the weathered old Four Sword, preventing it from being pulled from its pedestal.

"The maidens...are...are they dead?" Pike wondered aloud.

"No...they are not," said a strange voice. Everyone turned to see a bright light appear next to them. Then it spread like an explosion, so bright that they all had to shut their eyes. When the light dimmed down, they saw a little girl hovering before them, a doll clutched in her hand. She was an odd creature -- completely silver, like chrome. There was a magical air about her.

"Fairy Queen..." Link uttered in shock.

The Fairy Queen winked.

"That's right. We certainly did have some good times together, didn't we, Link?"

Link gulped.

_FLASHBACK!_

_The King of Red Lions nodded to Link who was rolling around in the water, screaming, and crying._

_"What, is he in labor or something?" the Queen asked._

_"The kid's just got a weak stomach...give him the Pepto."_

_The Queen threw the bottle at Link, and it bounced off his head._

_"Whatcha waitin' for, boy? Pick up the damn box!"_

_"CAN'T YOU SEE HOW MUCH FUCKIN' PAIN I'M IN, BITCH?" Link screamed._

_The Fairy Queen sighed, and flew down near Link, picked up the bottle, opened it, and grabbed Link. She shoved the liquid down his throat._

_"There ya go! Better?" she said._

_Link sat up._

_"Yeah, I guess that feels a lot better..."_

_But he was cut short when he chucked all over the Fairy Queen._

_"AH! EW! YOU SON OF A BITCH! DO YOU KNOW WHAT I'M GONNA HAVE TO DO NOW!" she screamed._

_"No, and I don't particularly care..." Link replied with a smirk._

_"I'm gonna have to take my clothes off..." the Fairy Queen replied with a smirk._

_Link scrambled backwards._

_"Oh, shit! You're not gonna...?"_

_"Why not?"_

_"Because you didn't pay me yet..." Link said with a wink._

_"Ok...is this what I think it is..." the King replied._

_"How much money ya got?" Link asked._

_"Hmm...about...1,000,000 rupees. How much should I pay you?"_

_"It depends on what exactly we're doing. 15 rupees should get you an hour of my services. But, if you give me 100 rupees, I'll take you as far as you wanna go, for as long as you want!" Link said._

_"Ooh! Ooh! Here's 100!" the Queen said, handing Link the money._

_The two of them went over a few things, then they went to a clump of trees in the grotto._

_END FLASHBACK_

Link glanced nervously at Tetra.

"Erm...yeah...we did have some fun times. But we had them a looooong time ago. Way before we started dating, Tetra..." he said.

"Oh, don't worry. I had some fun times with her too," said Tetra.

"What!"

"Nevermind fun times! Your Highness, what happened to the maidens?" Pike asked.

"Majora has had them sealed and cast away to various areas of Oceana," said the Fairy Queen solemnly.

"Listen," she said, "you are about to embark on your greatest quest yet. Unlike your adventure to defeat the Vaati-possessed Bambi, your goals in this quest are not simply laid out as before. There will be no dungeons and bosses. You must use your wit and creativity to find what you must seek and fulfill the Prophecy."

"Um...what are we seeking?" Tetra asked.

"Many things. The six maidens, the Four Masks of Termina, the Six Tools of the Gods, and the Second Prophecy."

"_Six _maidens? There are only four," said Link.

The Fairy Queen shook her head.

"There are six. The two dead maidens, Astasia and Brigette, both gave birth to daughters, right? Now that their mothers are dead, the girls are fated to become the next maidens. These girls are, as you should know, Bambi and Aryll..."

"Aryll! Is she ok?" Link asked.

"Yes, your sister will be fine. Bambi sent her away for her own safety. But she has her own quest to tend to. You have sheltered her for so long, Link...she may be six years old, but someday, she will be an even greater hero than you. It is time for her to spread her wings and fly, and this quest will train her to become the hero she was born to be. You will not see your sister for a few months, Link. But you will eventually, and when that time comes, you must bring her to this shrine to become a maiden. Now Bambi is alive as well. She needs to be brought here too, and that will also happen with time. Start by saving the four original maidens. They are imprisoned at the four ends of Oceana."

"And there is a Second Prophecy?" Pike asked, her eyes wide.

"Yep. But it is sealed in the Dark World, along with one of the Six Tools of the Gods. You must save the first four maidens, and recover the Four Masks of Termina: Odolwa's Mask, Goht's Mask, Gyorg's Mask, and Twinmold's Mask. Once you have these four masks, you can call upon the aid of Four Giants. They are mystical creatures, and with the maidens, they will open a portal to the Dark World. Link, you will then pull the Four Sword, and as four separate beings, you will complete another part of your quest.

As for the Six Tools of the Gods...well...only one person can find one weapon, that person being a weapon's true wielder.

Now that is all I can tell you about your quest. But I will be watching over you, and we will meet again. I reccomend you start searching for the maidens first..."

"Wait! My father...is he dead?" Pike asked.

"I made sure your father escaped safely. He is alive and well in a town a long way from here," said the Queen Fairy.

Pike looked relieved, but Tetra looked annoyed.

The Queen Fairy began to disappear.

"That ocarina will be of great use to you. You must head for the Great Forest at the north end of Oceana. You will find the first maiden there, and more secrets will unfold..." And then she was gone.


	7. Woe to the Children

_**Sorry it took so long! But here it is: chapter 7!**_

**_By the way, The Legend of Zelda: The Prince of Ny-Potho is out. It's the sequel to Four Swords Plus and it TIES IN WITH THIS STORY! Yes, Ny-Potho and Sister are connected! Read Ny-Potho!_**

**_AND REVIEW THIS CHAPTER. AND NY-POTHO. 'CAUSE IT NEEDS MORE REVIEWS._**

* * *

****

_**Chapter 7 -- Woe to the Children**_

"Ugh...how long has it been now?" groaned Link, sagging on the back of his horse.

Ever since the engagement party gone wrong, an air of despair worse than that any felt before loomed over everything. The sky was always gray; thunder and lightning were present more than half of the time. Link, Pike, and Tetra were anxious, exhausted, and depressed. They feared for Arnav, the maidens, Aryll, and Bambi (though Link didn't really care about that). The Fairy Queen had reassured King Arnav's safety, but the others' went unknown.

"You expect me to have a WATCH, Link!" Tetra growled.

"Well...I was sort of hoping..." Link mumbled.

"Don't fight," sighed Pike. "We'll be at the forest soon... And hey -- there's a town on the way. We'll probably be reaching it in a few hours."

"Do you think Majora has fucked up the whole of Oceana?" Tetra asked.

"Wouldn't doubt it," Link snorted.

"Well, we'll be seeing how far his actions have spread..." said Pike grimly.

* * *

"There they are. They weren't exactly hard to find. Well, not for me, anyway. I'm so cool, you know. I have such stealth, I could be in the Olympics. My navigation skills are so great that I --"

"Ok, stop it now!" Shadow begged Vaati. "We came here to do a job, you know!"

Vaati sighed and played with a lock of his long, silver hair.

"Yeah, well...in my opinion this job isn't very efficent unless someone gets killed," he said.

"Oh...don't worry. Someone WILL die. Majora has hired us to kill Link's horse! That must mean he thinks we're REALLY smart!" Shadow said enthusiastically as he picked up a bow and quiver that sat on the ground next to him.

"I'm the smart one," Vaati said.

"No you're not, I am," replied Shadow, glaring at Vaati for a moment before turning back to the bow. He tried to put the arrow on it properly, but found himself unable.

"Vaati, how do you set this thing up? Is there an 'on' button?" the young boy said frustratedly, turning to Vaati desperately.

"Tch...let me see that," Vaati huffed, snatching it from his partner. He attemped too.

"Jeez, does this point of the arrow point up or down...?" he wondered aloud.

"You can't do it either!" Shadow said.

"Yes I can, you nipple!" snarled Vaati, hastily resting the arrow on the bow so that the tip pointed to the sky.

"That's not right, it's not aimed at Link's horse! How are you supposed to shoot that thing?"

"Of course it's right, I'm always right!"

"USE IT THEN!"

Vaati tried to fire the misplaced arrow, but naturally, it didn't work. Tears welled up in his eyes.

"But it's riiiiight!" he sniffled in a whiny tone.

"Shut up, neither of you can get it right..." a new voice grumbled. Dark Link stepped out behind them, took the bow and arrow, and placed the arrow properly on the bow.

"Dark, why are you here?" Shadow asked his twin, looking surprised.

"Majora sent me to make sure you two could position the arrow properly on the bow. Our assumptions were right -- you couldn't. Tsk, tsk, tsk."

"So...he doesen't think we're smart?" Vaati asked.

"Well, actually, he just said that Shadow was his concern." Dark shot a sympathetic look at his brother before continuing. "But he never ever has anything bad to say about Vaati. Never... I don't know why he likes you."

"Because I'm awesome," replied Vaati, who was unable to hide his flushing cheeks.

"Great for you. Now let's just get this on with and kill the damn horse..." muttered Dark, rolling his eyes as he aimed the bow at Link's horse. He slowly moved parrallel to his light self to keep in position. Shadow and Vaati waited tensely, and at last, Dark fired.

* * *

Link uttered a gasp as his horse made a frightened grunting noise and fell to the ground.

"What happened!" Tetra asked, stopping her own horse, dismounting, and walking over to Link as he recovered from the fall.

"I don't know. It just made this weird noise and fell over," Link said. Pike was quick to join them and inspect the horse.

"Well, here's the problem. There's an arrow sticking out of its head..." said Pike. Indeed, she was right. The horse had been shot.

"An arrow? Someone was shooting at us!" Tetra exclaimed, turning suspicious blue eyes to the bushes. Link followed her gaze and glared at the plants.

"I didn't like the look of those bushes from the start..." he hissed. Pike looked at him.

"Yeah, someone was probably hiding in them..." she commented.

"No, I mean I think it was the bushes..."

Tetra opened her mouth to say something that would most likely be rude, but Pike interrupted.

"We have to be careful. We have many enemies now... This was obviously deliberate. The culprit was most likely aiming for Link," she explained.

"Is the horse gonna live? I mean, this arrow's pretty deep. It probably went into its brain or something," said Tetra. But then the horse started to stand up!

"IT'S ALIVE!" cried Link.

* * *

Dark, Shadow, and Vaati watched the horse beginning to stand.

"That was supposed to kill it!" Dark said through clenched teeth.

"Oh, don't worry. I can fix the problem," said Shadow. He pulled out a hand gun and shot the horse repeatedly. It finally died.

* * *

Link, Pike, and Tetra watched in horror as many bullets flew from the bushes, piercing the horse, which died pretty quickly after that.

"Holy crap!" Tetra cried.

Pike blinked in surprise.

"Ok, maybe the victim really was Link's horse... But regardless, we mustn't take a chance. Let's quicken our pace to the Great Forest," she said, standing abrubtly and heading for her white mare. Tetra copied with her Paint.

"What about me?" Link whined.

"Get on my horse with me," Tetra commanded. Sulking, Link shuffled over and mounted behind her, clutching the pirate's waist.

"I wanted my own horse..." he whimpered.

"No chat, let's get moving!" Pike said in a gruff yet concerned tone as she set off at a gallop. Link and Tetra were quick to follow, and off the group sped.

* * *

Pike had mentioned there being a town earlier, and that there was. The trio rode into it and slowed their pace. If the wilderness they had just come from was eerie, then the town was far worse. Heavy fog consumed it, the streets were full of mud, and creaky old wooden houses lined the deserted streets.

"Ok...this place is weird..." Tetra said quietly.

"Can we rest here for a moment? I'm really thirsty..." said Link.

Pike said nothing. She got off her horse and walked down the street absentmindedly.

"Pike...?" Tetra called. Pike didn't reply for a moment, but after a few seconds, she turned to her companions with a face clouded with confusion.

"These buildings...do you see how old they look?" she asked. Link and Tetra looked around slowly.

"Well...yeah. Why?" questioned Link.

"This town is called Casterwaul. It was a normal town; my father and I rode through here just a few weeks ago. It doesen't make sense for everything to look so aged. This whole place seems abandoned..." Pike turned bitter. "Majora's wrath's been through here, I presume."

"Do you think it's _completely _abandoned?" Tetra inquired.

"Looks like it," Link stated.

"I don't know... It's risky to go picking for answers, but we need to find out. No shouting though. Goddesses know what could be lurking here... Just search the buildings..."

Link and Tetra dismounted and began peaking through windows. Each house possessed similar qualities -- everything was ransacked. They searched every building of Casterwaul, but there was no sign of life.

"Death has been through here... Damn you, Majora!" hissed Pike to herself. "So many innocent people..."

The sound of giggling rose through the mists.

"Did...you guys hear that?" Link asked nervously.

"Yeah...creepy horror movie-type giggling," said Tetra, searching for the source with wide eyes.

"Nevermind the spookiness factor of it! This could mean survivors!" breathed Pike, bounding off through the heavy fog in the direction the noise was coming from.

"Pike, wait! We could get lost!" Tetra called, running after her sister.

Link hesitated.

"I...I don't...I DON'T WANT TO BE ALONE! DON'T LEAVE ME!" he wailed, dashing off after the girls.

The childish laughter lead them to a small alleyway near where they had entered the town.

"Hello?" Pike called out. The noise stopped.

"Ok, I'm not thirsty anymore, so can we please get out of here!" Link squeaked.

"Not if I know that there's possibly a lone child out here!" Pike retorted, searching around.

Tetra sighed and watched Pike scout, but she grew alarmed by a prickle running down her spine. It was the feeling one gets when they are being watched...

Tetra spun around. There, sitting against the building directly across from the alleyway was a little girl who looked to be about Aryll's age, give or take a year. She was wearing an elegant grey and black dress, though the color combination was neither warm nor inviting to the eye. The lone child had red hair cut to just below her chin. However, Tetra could not glimpse her face: she had her head buried in her arms, and her arms on her knees.

"Link, Pike, come!" Tetra barked softly as she quickly ran to the child. Link and Pike hurried after her.

Tetra kneeled besides the little girl and punched her in the arm.

"Hey, kid! Are you alive?"

"Tetra, don't PUNCH her!" Pike groaned.

The girl did not react to Tetra's physical approach.

"Are you ok, little girl?" Pike cooed softly, gently touching her shoulder. The kid's head snapped up to look at Pike so quickly it frightened the trio.

The little girl had a pale face and big, round gray eyes. There was something odd about her...she didn't blink, and her expression was bare. She showed no emotion.

Despite her discomfort, Pike dared to question the odd youth.

"Do you have a name, sweetie?" she asked motherly.

The girl stared blankly at Pike, long and hard. It seemed she would not reply, but finally she did.

"...Isabella," she answered in a tone as blank as her face.

"Freak...cough...fr-cough-eak..." Link fake-coughed. Tetra nudged him in a scolding fashion, but she was smiling at his joke.

"Isabella...that name... Oh...! You're the daughter of the mayor of Casterwaul, aren't you? I met your father, he mentioned you!" said Pike. Yet again, Isabella stared.

Pike shifted uncomfortably.

"He...is your father...right?"

Isabella nodded.

"Is he here?" Pike asked.

Isabella shook her head. Link and Tetra exchanged glances.

"Umm...is anyone here?" Pike asked, more quietly.

Isabella nodded.

"Can you say anything but your name?" Link asked rudely. Isabella turned her scary stare to him. Link flinched and backed up, but she kept staring.

"Who all is here?" Pike questioned.

"My brothers, sisters, and Old Man Demise," Isabella said blankly.

"Old Man Demise? Doesen't 'demise' mean, uh, death or something?" Tetra asked. Isabella gazed at the pirate.

"Please...show us where they are," requested Pike.

Isabella slowly stood up and grabbed Pike's hand in her own. Pike shuddered...Isabella's hands were deathly cold. The little heiress of Casterwaul lead the group down the street until they reached what appeared to be an old bar/hotel.

* * *

Link, Tetra, and Pike looked around with shock and discomfort when they entered the bar. It was packed with children who held similar expressions to Isabella's. When they entered the bar, the young kids turned to stare expressionlessly at them.

"M-may we see this Old Man Demise you spoke of?" Pike asked, glancing at the children nervously. Without a word, Isabella lead them to the very back of the large bar.

This part of the building was drastically darker. A lone chair stood in the dustiest, dankest corner, and upon it sat a dark figure. He was hidden in the darkness, but Link, Tetra, and Pike could here his raspy voice as he softly spoke to a circle of children around him.

Isabella pointed at the man and slowly turned her head to look at Pike.

"There..." she said.

"Thank you..." Pike murmured. She looked at Link and Tetra, who hung back uneasily.

"You were the one who wanted to meet him, so meet him..." Link croaked hoarsely, shoving Pike towards the man and the group of children. The children turned their emotionless faces to stare at her, but the old man kept talking.

"Guests..." said a young boy in a creepy tone, pointing at Pike.

A soft chuckle floated from the figure on the chair.

"Well well well, if it isn't the princess and some friends... What brings you here, young mistresses and master?" Old Man Demise asked.

"Kind sir...what happened to this place? It used to be so full of life!" said Pike.

"Things are as they were meant to be," said Demise.

"But --"

"Sometimes things are better left untold," the old man said dismissively. Confused, Pike shut her mouth.

"Yeah, sure, but how come no one around here blinks?" Link asked.

"We don't need to blink..." said a young girl.

Tetra was about to make a comment when Old Man Demise interrupted.

"My my, it is awfully dark in here. Jimmy, won't you light a candle?"

The boy who had announced their arrival slowly got up and walked to a nearby table. An unlit candle and a box of matches sat upon it, so he lifted the candle and brought it over to Demise who took it gently in his own hands with a nod of thanks to Jimmy.

Link, Pike, and Tetra could see him more clearly now. He had pale, gnarled hands. Most of his body was hidden in a large overcoat, and his face was shadowed from view by a large black hat.

"What brings you here, children?" Old Man Demise croaked.

"We're on our way to the Great Forest..." answered Tetra.

The elder's dry lips curled into a frown.

"That is a fair distance from this place. Maybe you should spend the night here."

"Umm, I've watched enough horror movies to know to say no..." said Link, inching backward. He squeaked when he backed into some children who had mysteriously appeared there.

Old Man Demise stood up.

"No, no, I insist!" he exlcaimed.

Pike backed up a bit too.

"We really must be going," she said hurriedly. The princess gasped when she felt a hand close on her wrist.

"He insisted you stay, bitch..." hissed a little girl who had grabbed her.

Pike gulped.

"We'll stay..."

Old Man Demise grinned, showing off his crooked yellow teeth.

"Good...I'll have some of the children show you to your room."

* * *

Link sat on his lumpy cot, antsy with nerves. Tetra paced around the room, and Pike stared out the window.

"Pike, you said we'd make an escape! When are we gonna leave?" Link whined.

"What does the clock say?" Pike asked.

Link looked at it.

"10:00 P.M.," he answered.

"We need to wait longer." Link and Tetra groaned.

"That old guy was creepy. Do you think he had something to do with the wrecking of the town and the behavior of the children?" Tetra wondered aloud.

"No doubt," Link grunted.

"So what do we do about it?" asked Tetra.

"I don't know... We don't really have much time to waste. Who knows what's happening to the maidens. I think there's a time limit on this mission, you know," replied Pike.

"Whatever. I'm going to the bathroom..." Tetra grumbled. She got up and left the room.

* * *

After Tetra finished the bathroom, she opened the door and nearly screamed when she ran into the blank stare of Isabella.

"Oh! Uh...Isabella, right? Something like that, I'm guessing. Shouldn't you be in bed or something instead of walking around and scaring people while not blinking? That's awfully rude," Tetra snapped.

"I was looking for you," said Isabella. Then she began to smile.

"Ummm...why?" Tetra asked suspiciously.

Isabella's smile turned into a full grin, showing off unusually pointy teeth.

"Old Man Demise requested a word with you..."

* * *

Link and Pike were jerked out of their thoughts when Tetra's scream pierced the air.

"Oh, crap! Tetra!" Link gasped, bursting out of the room. Pike was hot on his heels.

"TETRA! WHERE ARE YOU?" Pike yelled. Nothing but silence met her ears in turn.

"Start searching!" Link commanded. He and Pike got right to it -- but it took quite a bit of time, as they were on the top floor of the bar/hotel, and there were a good many rooms...

The pair searched the upstairs without sight of Tetra. They pounded down the stairs to the bar area, and that too was completely deserted.

"This place was packed earlier!" Link cried. "Where could everyone have gone in such a short amount of time?"

Pike stopped and grabbed Link's shoulder to get his attention. She gestured towards a door at the far end of the bar.

"We haven't checked there..." she pointed out. With a feeling of dread, she and Link bustled over to it.

They opened the door quietly, but everything was pitch black.

"We can't get anywhere if we can't see!" Link groaned irritably. Pike bounded over to where the matches and the candle sat. She lit the candle, then returned to Link's side. The light revealed stared beyond the door, so they slowly made their way down...

* * *

"I knew you were weird!" Tetra hissed. She was tied down to a stone table.

Old Man Demise chuckled and played with a strand of her hair.

"Don't talk. It will all be over soon, my dear. You see, I feed off of people your age and older. What do you think happened to all the adults in this town? ...I ate them all."

"THAT'S GROSS!" Tetra struggled.

"And I'm sure that a pretty girl such as yourself will taste mighty fine... Besides, your death will spite Majora...idiot that he is."

"Why do you hate him? You're evil too!"

"Yes...that is true. In fact, the darkness and hatred he spread caused me to be created. He does not want you killed. But I do...you are the keeper of the Triforce of Wisdom, not to mention the princess of Hyrule. You'll taste better than anything else I've ever laid tongue on, hehehe... But all-in-all, I hate him just because I hate him," explained Demise.

"THIS IS GETTING REALLY WEIRD! SOMEBODY HELP ME!" Tetra screamed.

"No one will help you, pirate... The only ones here to hear your screams are myself and my children," said Demise, pointing at the posessed children gathered around him and Tetra.

"They aren't your's! These are children of the town!"

"They were before I killed their parents and used mind control powers on them..."

"You mean you orphaned all these kids?" Tetra gasped.

"Sure did, lil' lady. Now...prepare to be eaten, bitch!" crowed Old Man Demise.

"NEVER!" Tetra cried defiantly.

"LET HER GO!" exclaimed Pike as she and Link jumped down the last few stairs.

"Pike! Link!" Tetra shrieked.

Old Man Demise hissed and turned to look at Link and Pike. Then his lips curled into a twisted smile.

"What are you doing to her?" Link yelled.

"I was just going to eat her," Old Man Demise answered.

"WHAT?" barked Pike.

"I'll tell you. I eat those people with pure souls your age and older... That's what happened to the adults of this town. Now there children are my slaves until they come of age. And after I eat your little friend here, you two are next!"

Angry and scared, Link pulled the Master Sword from its hilt and gripped it tightly.

"What ARE you?" Pike asked.

Old Man Demise laughed evilly and removed his hat. Pike, Link, and Tetra let out horrified screams. The bottom half of his face was normal, but the top half was just bones.

"I am a demon created by the evil Majora has spread. But do not be fooled, my chilren -- I am no ally to him. Now shut the fuck up while I eat this girl..." hissed the demon elder, baring his teeth and leaning toward Tetra. She screamed loudly.

For once in his life, Link wasted no time taking action. He lunged at his girlfriend's attacker, and slashed him with the Master Sword. Demise howled in pain and fury and leapt back, clutching the new wound on his arm.

"YOU LITTLE BASTARD..."

Link pointed the sword at him.

"Not...another...word," he hissed.

"Fine. I'll make you a deal: we take this little fight outside. If you win, I'll release my hold on these children and set this girl free. But if I win...you're mine. Meet me in the middle of town..." And with those words, the demon vanished.

"Go...and win!" Tetra hissed.

The children gathered in the room glared at them as Link made to release Tetra from the stone table.

"Don't bother, nipple-brain..." snarled Isabella. "That's magic..."

Pike looked at Tetra for reassurance.

"It's true. Only your victory in the battle can save me...now go!"

* * *

Nervously, Link and Pike crept out of the bar/hotel, Link clutching the Master Sword; Pike clutching her shamishir.

"COME OUT, DEMISE! WE KNOW YOU'RE HERE, I CAN FEEL YOU!" Pike screamed angrily. She was furious at him for her sister's capture, and even more infuriated by what he had done to her people.

The temperature in the air suddenly dropped. Link and Pike could see their breath misting...

"Ok, it just got really cold..." Link squeaked.

"No duh!" Pike snapped.

"Well, it appears you showed up. I wasn't sure if you would...hehehe..." echoed Old Man Demise's voice.

"REVEAL YOURSELF, COWARD!" yelled Pike.

A black cloud appeared a good distance away, and it slowly morphed into the foe.

Link and Pike stared at Demise, and he stared back. The good guys had absolutely no clue who would make the first move.

"If you're gonna come, come!" Pike commanded.

"Well, if you insist..." Demise literally flew at Link, dealing him a blow to the head so hard he fell unconcious. The Master Sword clattered away.

"Link!" cried Pike.

Demise rounded on the Oceanan princess.

"You have an awfully rude mouth, little girl. I'll teach you to disrespect me... HYA!" The demon attacked Pike with a cry, but she ran at him too, stabbing at him with the shamishir. Strangely, it began to glow gold... Pike and Demise both held off out of sheer shock.

"What's going on...?" Pike uttered.

Up in the air, the darkness of the hour parted, and a golden beam of light shone through above Pike's head. Down from the beam floated what looked like a sword... A golden, gleaming sword. A cutlass to be exact.

"No...it can't be..." the princess gasped. Demise watched in terror and back away.

The cutlass floated down into Pike's hands.

"The Light Cutlass... One of the six Tools of the Gods...! And...it's...mine?"

The light from the sky faded, but the cutlass still glowed gold. Pike put away her shamishir hastily, feeling the warmth of her new blade. Recovering from the shock of the honor she had just been given, Pike smirked and turned back to Demise.

"You have an awfully rude mouth, sir. I'll teach you to disrespect me..." she mocked. Demise meant to escape the attack, but Pike lunged suddenly. She took no time in piercing him with her new weapon.

"NOOOOOOOO! I WAS SO CLOSE TO CANNABALISM...! AAAAGGGHHHH, BITCHES!" The demon exploded. Demise had been ultimately vanquished by Pike.

Link groaned softly and sat up slowly.

"What'd I miss...?"

Pike's eyes were bright with excitement.

"Link! Remember what I told you about the six Tools of the Gods?"

"...Sort of."

Pike showed the Light Cutlass to him.

"This is the Light Cutlass, and it is one of those six tools! We are one step closer to defeating Majora!"

"But there are many, many steps to go, ya know..." said a voice. Link and Pike turned to see the Fairy Queen floating by them.

"Oh...it's you again," Link snorted.

The Fairy Queen ignored him.

"Remeber -- you must seek the other five Tools, save the captured maidens, awaken the two new maidens, find the Second Prophecy, and seek the Four Masks of Termina, to name a few."

Link and Pike frowned.

"Oh, but don't worry," said the queen, "The Gods saw it fit for Pike to be given the honor of being the wielder of the legendary Light Cutlass. This tool will be of great use to not only Pike, but for everyone else as well.

Tetra has been saved, and the curse on the children has been broken. Sadly, nothing can bring back their parents...they are orphans now. But rest assured, I will see to them (eventually). This place will thrive again in time..." The Fairy Queen turned to Link.

"Time is a key, Link. You are the Wind Waker, and not to mention a good looking one at that; that is true, but there are other destinies you will fulfill. You will reach the Great Forest some time tomorrow. Lazerus is the maiden you will save, and you will need the Ocarina of Time to do it. Free Lazerus as soon as possible; she will be your biggest aid at this point in your quest."

Link, Pike, and the queen heard a voice from nearby.

"You did it!" cried Tetra, running up to them. Link hugged her tightly.

"Tetra! You're not eaten!" he exclaimed.

"Demise is dead, right?" Tetra asked. Link, Pike, and the Fairy Queen nodded.

"I thought so. My bindings disappeared, and then all the children fell asleep..."

"They are free once more. But it's like I told Link and Pike here: they are still orphans, but I will see to it that they are taken care of...I'll get around to it eventually, I suppose."

Pike showed the Light Cutlass to Tetra.

"Tetra, the gods have gifted me the Light Cutlass! It's one of the Six Tools of the Gods!"

"Woah, dude!"

"In time, all of you will have one of the tools. But there are six, and each needs an owner... Five are left, and of course, two of those five will be taken by Link and Tetra. In time, Bambi shall recieve one too. However...that leaves two left. This is when you must listen to certain pieces of the Prophecy to find these two wielders. Pay special attention to:

_The children of darkness will come forth_

_To lend aid to those true_

_To lay hand on the six Tools of the Gods_

_To help small girls find their way_

_Look for their red blood amongst the black_

_Seven heinous souls_

_One who reigns_

_Four who are weak-minded_

_And two who come forth to do what the gods see right_

_Spare the two_

_And leave all else to die._"

"Wait..." said Tetra. "Does that mean that the two unknown wielders are members of Majora's army?"

The Fairy Queen shrugged.

"I 'unno."

* * *

Dark and Shadow walked through the halls of the Dark Ones' manor.

"Why did we have to kill Link's horse anyway?" Shadow asked.

"It's part of the plan. I'm gonna fill in as the horse with my animal transformation, and you and I are gonna create a trap for Link, remember?" replied Dark.

"I don't get it... Majora makes us do all this elaborate crap when we could just shoot the bastards."

Shadow and Dark made their way down to the basement of the manor, where Ganondorf had "Zelda" pressed against the wall as he mocked her. These sessions had been quite frequent for the disguised Bambi. Still, only one person knew her secret...

Dark watched angrily, but Shadow giggled.

"Ganondorf, there is no need to abuse prisoners," Dark said sternly as he and Shadow strode up to their fellow dark side member.

"Shut up, you little brat. Why so defensive? And besides...you can't tell me what to do. You're one of the lower ranking members of this army, remember?" scoffed Ganondorf. Bambi turned her eyes on Dark, but he would not meet them.

Ganondorf looked at Shadow, and a seductive grin lit his features.

"But YOU could tell me what to do, kid..." he purred, stroking Shadow's thigh and up to his hip. Shadow Link looked down at Ganondorf's hand, confused. Dark rolled his eyes. Sometimes it was just appalling that his brother could be so naive... He didn't even know he was getting mollested. Bambi seemed to share his thoughts, as she gave Ganondorf and Shadow a look of disgust and exasperation.

"Well, then I tell you to keep picking on the princess," Shadow declared stupidly. Ganondorf winked at him and turned back to Bambi.

"Very well, my dear Shadow."

Ganondorf roughly grabbed Bambi's chin and pushed her head hard against the wall. Bambi winced. Dark's anger flared, and he was about to say something, but Shadow beat him to it.

"She has the Triforce of Wisdom, right?" he asked.

"Yes," answered Ganondorf.

"I wanna see!" Shadow grabbed Bambi's right hand and pulled the elegant glove from it. Ganondorf glanced, but then something caught his eye. He released the girl's face and snatched her wrist away from Shadow.

"She has a Triforce alright...but this...it isn't the Triforce of Wisdom! It's the Triforce of Power!"

Bambi felt her heart nearly stop beating. She had been found out...

"THIS WAS SUPPOSED TO BE MY TRIFORCE PIECE FOREVER! NOT ONLY IS THIS GIRL AN IMPOSTER OF THE REAL ZELDA, BUT SHE IS A THIEF!"

"No I'm not!" cried Bambi.

"SHUT UP! YOU SOMEHOW MANAGED TO TAKE WHAT'S MINE!" Ganondorf roared, grabbing Bambi by the arms and chucking her down on the floor with great force.

"What's going on here?" Ciara was bounding down the stairs, attracted by the noise. Vaati was right behind her, and Agahnim was holding up the rear.

"THIS ZELDA IS A FAKE! LOOK AT HER HAND...THAT IS THE TRIFORCE OF POWER, NOT THE TRIFORCE OF WISDOM!" Ganondorf explained loudly.

Vaati looked at Bambi and sneered.

"Well, wouldn't you know...it's Bambi. Playing decoy for the real Zelda, eh girl?"

Bambi glared defiantly up at them, not saying a word.

"You know her?" Ganondorf asked.

"Know her? HA! She killed me!" Vaati snarled.

"We got the wrong girl?" Ciara said shrilly. Agahnim seized Bambi's wrist to take a look.

"Leave me alone!" Bambi growled, trying to pull away from Agahnim.

"Look at her! If she knew how to even USE those powers, she could pull away easily! She can't control the stolen Triforce piece!" announced Ganondorf.

"I DIDN'T STEAL ANYTHING!" Bambi screamed.

Ganondorf studied her face.

"Oh...I know you. You're the one who foolishly brought me above the ocean!" he said.

"Yes...that's right. She was in my occult when she did it. I formed an occult back on Windfall, and she joined... She was always useless though," said Ciara, smirking at Bambi.

"Long time no see, Bambi," sneered the Gerudo.

"Ciara..." hissed Bambi, her silver eyes narrowing to slits.

"Would you guys just lay off?" snapped Dark, standing in front of Bambi.

"Ooooh, Dark likes Bambi!" sang Vaati.

"I...I just think we should get Majora to settle this..." retorted Dark.

"Settle what?"

Everyone turned to see Majora standing at the top of the stairs. He descended and slowly paced towards his underlings.

"Majora, this isn't the real Zelda! This is that little rat I was telling you about: Bambi!" said Vaati.

Bambi flinched as all eyes turned on her...


	8. The Mistakes We Make

_**You better like this chapter, it took me hours, lol...**_

**_You will see more of the Bo/Sylvia thing later on._**

**_Meanwhile, I've been drawing various characters from the story, and I'll provide links to the pictures somewhere on my forums._**

**_Please, for the love of oily horses and brain stapling, REVIEW._**

**_Next chapter will be out as soon as I can get it out._**

* * *

**__**

_**Chapter 8 -- The Mistakes We Make**_

"An imposter, you say?" inquired Majora mildly, his eyes fastened on Bambi unblinkingly.

Ganondorf seized Bambi's wrist again and thrust her hand in Majora's face.

"Look at that! Is that not the Triforce of Power!"

"Stop spazzing, you'll have a heart attack," replied Majora, examining Bambi's hand.

"This is HER! The little peasant girl! I say we kill her now; she cannot even control her powers!" hissed Vaati.

"Did anyone know anything about this?" asked Majora.

Agahnim shoved Dark forward.

"He's acting pretty suspicious. Maybe HE knew..."

"I...I didn't!" Dark lied.

"I think he's lying!" argued Ciara, though she looked quite happy and spoke in a singsong voice.

"What if he isn't? Huh?" fired Shadow.

"He's a virgin! Of course he's impure!" growled Vaati.

"WHO CARES? ALL I KNOW IS THAT SOMEONE ELSE HAS MY BELOVED TRIFORCE OF POWER, AND I WANT IT BACK!" bellowed Ganondorf, grabbing Bambi by the neck and shaking her. She let out a choked cry, and a look of horror crossed Dark's face.

"Stop," said Majora calmly, putting a hand on Ganondorf's shoulder. He released Bambi and calmed himself. Bambi glared up at them all, rubbing her abused neck tenderly.

"How can you be so calm about this, Majora? Have you been smoking pot again?" Agahnim asked, exasperated.

"Er...um...ye -- no," Majora replied. He hurriedly turned to face the entire group.

"We shall keep the imposter as our personal slave. Do what you want with her; beat her, torture her, make her do ridiculous things, I don't care."

"KILL...HER!" yelled a frustrated Ciara.

"Silence, Ciara. Anyway..." Majora fastened his eyes on Bambi, and so did the others. "If she makes one wrong move, primarily one that shows loyalty to our enemies, then we will kill her in the most painful...way...possible." He smirked, and Bambi shrank back a little bit, the look of defiance on her face weakening slightly.

* * *

Link, Tetra, and Pike dismounted their horses and looked at the Great Forest which stood before them.

"How will we find Lazerus through all these trees?" groaned Link. "This forest is so big! So...large...and great!"

"That's why they called it the Great Forest," grumbled Pike with a roll of her eyes.

"Well, there's bound to be some giant killer evil entity that wouldn't be too hard to miss, right?" asked Tetra.

"I suppose. Let's tie the horses to this tree and go inside," ordered Pike as she proceeded to follow her own orders. Tetra did too, and the sisters began to walk into the thick of the trees.

"But it's so...dark!" whined Link.

Pike and Tetra stopped and turned to face Link with identical expressions.

"No duh," they said in unison. Link looked frightened.

"Wow, I was beginning to think you guys weren't at all alike, but I was wrong. That thing you did just now was freaky."

"Whatever. Now hurry up!" snapped Tetra.

"No! I don't want to go in there!"

"I said hurry up! Don't make me come out there, Link!"

"Ah! Fine! I'm coming in!" Link hurriedly followed the girls, and off they went.

* * *

"We've been walking forever, and I have yet to see a killer beast..." moaned Tetra.

"Let's keep looking..." grumbled Pike wearily.

"Tee hee!" Impish giggles rang out.

"Whoever's giggling like an idiot better stop it," snapped Link, plodding along.

"I don't giggle like an idiot. You giggle like an idiot when we have sex though," Tetra retorted.

"I thought it turned you on!" exclaimed Link, stopping in his tracks.

"No, it makes me feel like I'm having sex with some chick or something! You sound like a girl, you know!" Tetra stopped too.

The giggling continued.

"Guys, it's none of us!" whispered Pike. Sadly, her words went unheard.

"I do not sound like a girl! You sound like a girl, Tetra!" growled Link.

"That's 'cause I am a girl!"

"But sometimes you act like a MAN! I have to keep trying to convince people that you're not a dike because they all think you are one!"

"Oh yeah? Who?" Tetra stuck her fists on her hips and leaned forward to glare at Link in the eye in a way that only she could. Link flinched under her Tetra-gaze.

"K-Komali..." Link stuttered.

"Komali? Is that it?"

"Y-yes..."

"You make it sound as if Komali equals five different people!"

"Well --"

"Jeez! I don't care if HE thinks I'm a lesbian!" Tetra straightened up and rolled her eyes.

"GUYS!" Pike yelled over the now deafening laughter. Link and Tetra rounded on her with firey eyes.

"WHAT!"

"NONE OF US ARE GIGGLING! IT'S SOMETHING IN THE WOODS!"

"Oh, crap, there aren't little posessed children in here like in Casterwaul, are there?" squeaked Link.

The giggles stopped.

"No children in here but you...hee hee..." whispered a voice behind them. The trio nearly jumped out of their skins with fright and turned around to face a poe.

Pike pointed the Light Cutlass at the ghost.

"What do you want? Do you know of the whereabouts of the maiden Lazerus?"

"Maybe I do, maybe I don't," sniffed the poe, gliding from left to right.

"Speak or I'll gut you like a trout!" threatened Pike.

"Wow, she sounds even more like Tetra," commented Link.

The poe stopped moving.

"I'll tell you where the maiden is if you answer my riddle."

"We don't wanna answer your freakin' riddle, ok?" yelled Tetra.

"No, you must answer a riddle!"

"WE AREN'T ANSWERING ANY FUCKING RIDDLES!" Pike bellowed.

"FUCKING ANSWER THE FUCKING-FUCKEDY-FUCK RIDDLE OR I'LL FUCKING FEED YOU FUCKERS TO THE FUCKING MONSTER THAT LIVES IN THESE FUCKING WOODS, YOU FUCKERS!"

Link, Tetra, and Pike were taken aback.

"Ok...tell us the riddle..." said Pike slowly.

"What's black and blue?" asked the poe.

"What? What kind of riddle is THAT?" Link questioned rudely.

"Look, pal, just answer it!" sighed the poe.

"A newspaper?" tried Pike.

"A zebra!" declared Tetra.

The poe looked at Link.

"Care to take a chance, young man?"

"Umm...a zebra?" Link guessed.

The poe laughed.

"You're all wrong!" it said.

"Oh yeah? What was the answer then?" Tetra asked haughtily.

"The answer to 'what's black and blue' is...YOU THREE AFTER GETTING ATTACKED BY THE GIANT MONSTER THAT'S COMING RIGHT NOW! SEE YA, BITCHES!" crowed the poe, disappearing. Link, Tetra, and Pike were stunned by the odd riddle with its equally odd answer, but that stunning confusion was soon turned to extreme fright as the ground began to tremble with the footsteps of something large. An other-wordly battle cry sounded through the trees. Thinking as quickly as they could, the three comrades readied themselves. Sure enough, a strange creature burst through the trees toward them.

It was a large human-esque creature with a round, pregnant-looking belly supported on a thin body. It was in bright colors of red, green, and blue, and wielded a long sword and large shield. It's face was a wooden mask with glaring red eyes and a jagged hole for the mouth. Sprouting from the mask were what seemed to be yellow and brown streamers.

"I saw this creature in a book of old tales before...it is the legendary, not to mention long-dead Odolwa!" gasped Pike.

"Odolwa...don't we have to get something called Odolwa's Mask or something?" Tetra whispered.

"Yes! Look at its face! Its face IS the mask; one of the Four Masks of Termina that we need to collect!" replied Pike.

Odolwa let out another cry and dove at Pike. She shrieked out of surprise, but thrust at the creature with her cutlass. It hissed and threw a kick at Tetra, knocking her away.

Tetra slowly got up. She had not expected that offensive move, and was deeply angered because of it. Cool weapon or not, she vowed revenge and drew her dagger, running at the evil creature.

Link was also pissed by the attack on his girlfriend, and angrily leapt forward to Odolwa, Master Sword raised, and tried to slice it through its skin. He soon shared a similar fate as Tetra's when Odolwa sent him crashing backward with the flat side of its sword.

Pike stayed close to the evil deity, dodging its stomping feet as she sliced at its legs with her sacred cutlass. She was soon kicked far away, and while Odolwa was distracted, Tetra jumped in to take her sister's place. However, Tetra's small dagger made it more difficult to land good attacks, and it certainly wasn't a godly object, so it had little effect on Odolwa.

"THIS HAD BETTER SAVE LAZERUS..." bellowed Link, slipping out of the way of a blow from the creature's sword as he tried to get past its wildly thrashing limbs to Tetra.

Pike limped cautiously back towards the scene, and called in reply to Link, "I don't see why it wouldn't!"

Tetra let out a shriek as she got hit hard on the back of the head, sending her to her knees.

"I COULD USE A LITTLE..AGH...BACK UP..." she uttered.

"I'M TRYING..." yelled Link. Suddenly, Odolwa's sword got him in the leg, and with a cry, he fell over heavily.

"Link...!" gasped Pike. Despite the pain in her ribs from Odolwa's harsh attack, she forced herself forward as quickly as she could. She wanted to help her friends, but their enemy's defeat was far more important at the moment.

Tetra, meanwhile, had already risen to her feet and continually tried to stab her opponent. She managed to bury her dagger in its leg, but she could not pull it out again. While she was distracted, Odolwa knocked her over again, and planted a large foot on top of her. It seemed to relish the moments in which it placed pressure on its foot, crushing the young pirate. Tetra screamed.

"TETRA!" wailed Pike. She darted towards her fallen twin, but fell unconcious from a blow dealt to her head by the hilt of Odolwa's sword.

Link looked around at everything. He was the only hope now. Wincing from the pain of his heavily battered leg, he stood up, clutching the Master Sword, and forced himself into a run. Odolwa had not been expecting an attack from him seeing how long he had been down, so Link was able to attack the foe. Odolwa let out a shriek and stumbled backward, releasing an oxygen-deprived Tetra. Keeping up with his enemy's pace, Link repeatedly stabbed its legs (it was the only area he was tall enough to reach). However, there seemed to be little effect.

Link was confused. But suddenly, the voice of the Fairy Queen spoke in his ear...

"The Ocarina..." she whispered.

Link looked around to see if she was there, but she wasn't.

"Thank goodness, I hate that bitch," he murmured to himself.

The ocarina...the Ocarina of Time? How would that help? Link knew it was an instrument, so he figured that the Fairy Queen had meant for him to play it or something. Not knowing what else to do, Link dashed far away from Odolwa and pulled out the Ocarina of Time. He stopped running and put it to his lips, trying to think... But his mind whirled in horror as strange voices met his ears. Many spoke, and they all said different things...

"Heavy with the burden of the child she was carrying, she knew what she had to do --"

"He couldn't control what he wrote, and he wrote that which aids you --"

"She didn't know her child and that which she strived to create could end the --"

"They say Six Chosen Ones, but that is a lie --"

"The Seventh --"

"Time repeats itself. She buried the dagger in his side. The Light Princess...the Seventh..."

"The new Seventh shall make time repeat itself..."

Shocked and frightened by the voices that whirled through his head, Link felt not control over himself as he played a strange tune. His body shook violently. What were those voices? And it was almost as if the ocarina played itself... At last, the eerily mysterious yet beautiful song that flowed from his terrifying experience with the voices and ocarina ended.

Whatever the song was, it caused Odolwa quite a bit of grief, and ultimately defeated it. With the loudest, most terrifying wail anyone had ever heard, Odolwa glowed into a purple light.

Link watched for a moment, shaking. He hurriedly pocketed the ocarina, not wanting to play it again unless he absolutely had to... Quietly, Link vowed not to tell anyone about the frightening voices he heard when it reached his lips. Not yet, anyway...

Link looked at Tetra. It seemed she was dazed, and judging by the pain in her eyes, also broken-ribbed. But regardless, she sat up to watch Odolwa die. A voice behind him alerted Link to the fact that Pike was coming around.

"Odolwa's...dying..." she whispered, watching the scene in awe. "Now we can save Lazerus..."

But the sight that soon appeared before them filled the heroes' hearts with terror. Still illuminated in purple light, Odolwa began to shrink and change shape... And when the purple light went away, Link, Tetra, and Pike saw with horror that Lazerus now lay limp and unmoving before them, Odolwa's Mask still on her face.

"Oh, shit...! T-that WAS Lazerus!" screamed Tetra, scrambling forward to the still shape of the masked purple maiden. Pike followed as quickly as she could, and the stunned Link pursued while limping. What if he had killed his own aunt?

"Lazerus!" wailed Pike once she was beside the body. She abrubtly checked for breathing and signs of circulation.

"She's alive..." the Oceanan princess breathed, wiping some blood that dripped down on her forhead from her head wound. Link and Tetra sighed with relief.

Link tried to pull the mask from Lazerus' face -- but it stuck fast.

"The mask...it won't come off!"

"Try again!" hissed Pike. She and Tetra pushed the unconcious Lazerus into a sitting position, and Link tried again. It still wouldn't come off.

"Let me try... Here...you help Tetra hold her up," ordered Pike. Link obeyed, so Pike proceeded to try and remove the mask. Sadly, she couldn't either, but continued to try.

"Let me have a shot," said Tetra, wincing as she spoke from the pain in her ribs.

"Go ahead..." mumured Pike, taking her sister's place in holding up Lazerus.

First, Tetra tried to take off the mask the way Link and Pike had. But then she resorted to a stranger method... Closing her eyes, Tetra placed her hands gently on the mask. She let out a soft sighing noise, and her hands glowed with blue light. Amazingly, the mask dropped off, freeing Lazerus.

"Tetra, what the hell was that!" Link asked, surprised.

Tetra shrugged and blushed with pride.

"Just a little thing I've been practicing..."

"Wow...that was amazing! It must be because of your Triforce of Wisdom..." said Pike thoughtfully.

"Yeah, that's what I thought," Tetra agreed.

"Why didn't you do that earlier instead of having Pike and I try to yank it off her head?"

Tetra shrugged.

"Nobody asked me."

Link opened his mouth to say something, but stopped and turned to look at Lazerus when Pike whispered that she was waking up. Indeed she was. Lazerus opened her purple eyes slowly and moaned softly. She gazed blearily at Link, Tetra, and Pike.

"What have I been doing...?" she asked in a quiet, hoarse voice.

"Trying to kill us," stated Link. Tetra shot him a look, then turned back to Lazerus and held up the mask.

"This turned you into that Odolwa thing. It was stuck to your head, but I used my super awesome powers to take it off," Tetra bragged.

Lazerus moved the skirt of her gown away from her legs to reveal many wounds from all the stabbing. Tetra's dagger was still stuck in her leg.

"And did you also use your super awesome powers to put this dagger of yours into my leg?" inquired Lazerus, raising a brow. Pike winced at the sight.

"Oh...sorry..." Tetra grumbled sheepishly. She yanked the dagger from the purple maiden's leg, causing Lazerus to let out a cry of pain.

"Tetra! When someone gets stabbed, you don't just yank out the object!" scolded Pike.

"Well, I wanted my dagger back!" Tetra retorted defensively.

"Forget about it..." murmured Lazerus.

"I guess I should apologize for stabbing you too," said Link, looking at the wounds on his young aunt's legs.

"No one apologize," said Lazerus with a sigh. "I would have done the same thing, had I been in your place. You hadn't a clue that Odolwa was me. Actually, neither did I. Now let's get out of here, please. There are urgent matters which I must discuss with you."

"Can you walk?" Pike asked worriedly.

"I don't think so..." Lazerus admitted.

"Don't you have powers and stuff?" Link asked.

"The mask's wrath has temporarily weakened me... I can't do much yet."

Wincing from their own wounds, Link, Tetra, and Pike helped Lazerus up, and the battered looking group began to make their way out of the forest, carrying the mask with them.

* * *

After a long and painful journey, Link, Tetra, Pike, and Lazerus had finally left the Great Forest and had stopped at a nearby lake for some most needed rest.

"If we got beat up that bad on a battle so early on in our mission, then we're doomed when things get harder..." said Tetra, staring down at the glassy surface of the water miserably.

"You're all stronger than you think you are, you know," commented Lazerus softly. A confident spark in her purple eyes, she turned to Pike.

"Princess, I see you have obtained the Light Cutlass. Listen, all of you... All wielders of God Tools show great courage in some way. Not just anyone can obtain one of these sacred weapons."

"What makes Pike so great?" Link snorted. "Why do you think SHE'S the courageous one...? I'm the one with the Triforce of Courage, you know!"

"I never said I favored her courage over anyone else's," Lazerus said sternly, eyeing Link. He shrank back a little, then returned to looking at the water and thinking about the Ocarina of Time...

"I don't have courage to favor. Thinking back on it...I...I thought that I was strong. But I'm not... Back there, when I was getting crushed, Link had to save me. Back in Casterwaul, I had to be saved from Demise. Way back when I was fighting Vaati, I nearly got knocked off the edge of the arena and Bambi had to save me... Even further back, Link rescued me from the possessed Bambi and Dark Link. And then longer ago, I was captured by Ganondorf and had to be RESCUED..." Tetra spat bitterly, looking at the water with depressed and angry blue eyes. "I realize now that I've always been the damsel in distress... I've never saved anyone, and heck, I'm not even the one running around in a prissy dress!" The pirate princess pointed at her sister, who looked offended.

"Umm...I think you're strong, Tetra... Like by the way you punch me in the nose and stuff..." Link said meekly in a hesitant attempt at comfort.

Tetra looked at him weakly.

"No I'm not, Link... I have the broken ribs to prove it."

Pike frowned sympathetically.

"Sis..."

Lazerus put her hand on Tetra's shoulder. Tetra looked up at her.

"Listen...you've done more than you think you have. You would not be honored as a hero if you were weak. You have amazing powers, Tetra. That spell you did that took Odolwa's Mask from my face... That was powerful magic, and I'm sure you can do even better things. You have a righteous mind."

"That spell... Tetra! Can you heal us too?" Pike asked, her eyes lighting up with wonder. Tetra blinked.

"I...I don't know," she admitted.

"Give it a try," said Lazerus encouragingly.

Hesitantly, Tetra placed her hands on the purple maiden's wounded legs. She closed her eyes, focused, and let out a noise that sounded as if she were doing meditative breathing. The wounds slowly began to disappear until they were nothing but deep scratches.

"That was an amazing start..." Lazerus said with admiration.

Tetra blushed.

"Really?"

"Fucking sweet," said Link. Pike smiled proudly.

"Well...I'm glad I can help that way, but I don't want to be some dumb healer," Tetra declared, her brow furrowing.

"And you won't be," Lazerus assured her. "I think your biggest problem is that you don't have a good enough weapon. But that will change when you recieve one of the Six Tools of the Gods."

"I hope," said Tetra.

Lazerus looked at Tetra and her sister.

"Your father would be proud. If your mother was still alive, I'm sure she would be too."

"But Lazerus...you didn't know our mother...did you?" asked Pike, confused.

Lazerus shook her head.

"Not personally, no. I was pretty much a toddler when she came here. My sisters remember though. I remember SOME of when she was here..." Lazerus looked at Link. "It makes me think of the last time I saw yours and Bambi's mothers...my sisters... I was so young, I don't remember as much as Artet, Lunatet, and Fiza do, but the few memories I have of them are wonderful. Astasia and Brigette were great people. When I got older, I talked to them through telepathy even though they were far away in lands outside Oceana."

Link sat in thoughtful silence. He remembered his parents... They had died when he was about seven.

"Why did my mom leave here?" he asked, half to himself, half to the others.

"Astasia and Brigette were bored by the life they lead here in Oceana. When Tetra and Pike's mother Sylvia came with her crew, which included Bambi's father, my sisters saw it as an opportunity to escape to adventure. But sadly, the lives of everyone involved in the incident went downhill after that..." replied Lazerus.

"Was it 'cause we were born?" Link asked, glaring at Lazerus.

"No, your parents loved you all very much..."

"I wish that were true..." grumbled Tetra, her thoughts wandering to Arnav.

Lazerus looked hesitant about something for a moment. Then she turned to Link, Pike, and Tetra.

"Those days when the pirates came here to Oceana...I can show you, if you want..." she said. Those words seized the attention of the three young heroes.

"How?" Link asked.

The hesitant look remained on the purple maiden's face.

"The entire event has been recorded in the powers of my fellow maidens and I...sort of like a picture memory, you might say. I can show it to you, but you might not like all that you see..."

"Please...show us..." Pike begged quietly. A hunger to know what happened drove her desires, as it did with Link and Tetra.

With a heavy sigh as though she were releasing a deadly secret, Lazerus waved her hands and a small cloud appeared, in which images began to appear...

* * *

_The vast ocean stretched out for miles, no islands to break its void as far as the eye could see. The sky was a dark blue, a blue so fierce that strange weather was a promise. The dark water foamed and churned, and bobbing helplessly along on top of it was a pirate ship._

_A young woman who looked to be in her 20's stood at the bow of the ship, looking out at the waves. She was quite pretty with fair skin, bright blue eyes, and long dark brown hair that was pinned up in a swirled bun atop her head._

_"Oy! Sylvia! Got those pretty baby blue eyes of yours stuck on those neverending waters again, do you?" called a good natured voice from behind the woman. A small smile formed on her lips and she turned around to face the speaker. He was a young man about her age; tall, slim, and handsome. He had tanned skin, gray eyes, and messy blonde hair, and wore a ragged white shirt and khaki pirate's pants._

_"Flirting with your captain again, are you, Bo?" Sylvia asked teasingly. Bo grinned and raised a brow._

_"Well, of course, because you're the only one who I don't have to pay to have sex with me. Seriously." He strode over to the pirate captain and wrapped his arms around her waist. They kissed._

_Bo looked out at the ocean, and all traces of his playfulness disappeared._

_"Sylvia...if you won't admit it to the rest of the crew, admit it to me -- we're lost, aren't we?"_

_Sylvia sighed heavily._

_"I don't know anymore... But something about this direction just feels right to me." She looked up at Bo with fiery eyes._

_"But don't blame me and say that I got us lost!"_

_Bo winced at her words._

_"Well...I wasn't thinking of it in...erm...the EXACT same words..."_

_Sylvia turned away from him and rolled her eyes._

_"You're my true love and my best mate, Bo. Please...just trust me, ok?"_

_"Fine..." sighed Bo._

_Sylvia looked up at the sky and narrowed her eyes._

_"I can feel it in the wind... Something is going to happen. Can you feel it too?"_

_Bo was silent for a moment. Then he nodded._

_"I guess. I mean, I don't have your sixth sense, but the air does feel different."_

_There was a moment of silence._

_"Well," Bo said finally, "Let's go into the captain's quarters and fuck, shall we?"_

_"Are you wearing a condom?" Sylvia asked, her eyes twinkling. Bo nodded._

_"Put it on before I came out to see you, captain."_

_Taking Bo by the hand and smirking, Sylvia lead him to her room..._

* * *

_Night came soon. Of course, it came even sooner for Sylvia and Bo, as time flies when you're having fun (and I don't mean that innocently). After doing the wrong things for quite a few hours, Bo and Sylvia settled down to some wine. However, their private party was interrupted by a rap on the door._

_Sylvia rolled her eyes and groaned, setting down her glass of wine._

_"Who is it and what do you want?" she snapped._

_"Miss Sylvia, we see something on the horizon! It looks like some strange island..." called one of the male pirates through the door._

_The news had caught the interest of both Sylvia and Bo._

_"We'll be there in a moment," called Bo._

_"Aye-aye..." mumbled the pirate through the door. Disgust dripped in his voice, as he had heard Bo in the room and figured what was going on._

_The pirate captain and her first mate quickly got dressed._

_"I have a weird feeling about this," said Sylvia._

_"I kind of do too. But hey, this is exciting!" exclaimed Bo._

_"I suppose..."_

_After dressing as quickly as possible, the two pirates rushed to the decks. The rest of the crew was gathered at the bow, whispering amongst eachother and pointing at a dark, looming shape on the horizon._

_Sylvia pushed her way to the front of the group and snatched a telescope from one of the pirates. She stared through it while the rest of the crew waited eagerly for her opinion on what they hoped was some much anticipated land._

_"I do believe it is land we are seeing," Sylvia announced after a moment. The pirates cheered._

_"Are we going to head for it?" a pirate asked. Sylvia nodded, and more cheers rose._

* * *

_The ship sailed on for a few more hours, its crew excited over its destination. When they were nearly there, Bo took another look at the land through the telescope, Sylvia at his side._

_"Sylvia...this looks like a gate...or...an archway or something..." Bo observed. Sylvia took the telescope from him and looked through herself. Indeed, there did seem to be a large archway with a land beyond looming before them._

_"You're right, Bo... We're just about there. In another hour, I think we should be able to drop the anchor."_

_In another hour, they did just that. The crew split into groups and got into rowboats, the boat of Sylvia and Bo at the head of the group._

* * *

_All the rowing was tiring, but the pirates were egged on by their curiousity and intense desire for dry land. The fact that what they had seen appeared to be an archway was odd enough, but the sight became even more peculiar the closer they got. It was a vast golden archway, and beyond it lay a beautiful, heavenly land with white streets, fountains, white buildings, and most wonderful of all: gold._

_"This place will have good pickings, won't it?" whispered Bo. Sylvia nodded greedily. _

_The pirate captain let out a cheer as her boat reached the shore. She and her first mate climbed out, and the rest of the crew was not far behind in parking their boats and following them out._

_"Step lightly! There is always the slight chance that the residents of this place are hostile! Remember that!" she told her crew._

_"Well, that may prove to be true..." Bo whispered nervously to Sylvia._

_"Huh?"_

_Her heart sinking, Sylvia looked around as the people of the grand city left their homes curiously. A well-armed looking army was storming towards them._

_"Intruders!" called the leader of the army. "Put your hands in the air!"_

_Not knowing what else to do, the pirates obeyed. In dismay, the pirates let themselves be roughly escorted to a gleaming palace that lay in the heart of the city._

* * *

_"A band of outsiders, Your Highness..." said the army general as he and his men shoved the confused pirates down on the floor of the castle's throne room and pointed their swords at them._

_The army of the mysterious land had lead the pirates to the city's castle to be taken to what the pirates assumed was the king._

_The king was a large, chubby man with kind brown eyes, slightly tanned skin, and long, graying dirty blonde hair. Beside him sat the prince -- a young man who was Bo and Sylvia's age with his father's darker skin. He had blue eyes, and curly blonde hair. However, he did not share his father's warm eyes. The prince looked at the pirates mistrustingly._

_Looking at the confused pirates, the king's gaze hardened slightly, though he looked confused himself. The prince just glared._

_"Intruders, who are you to come to this land?" asked the king._

_"Well, it was her fault, really," said a pirate, pointing at Sylvia. Infuriated, Sylvia turned to glare at said pirate, but stopped and flinched when she saw that all eyes were on her, expecting the pirate captain to explain herself. However, before she could, Bo spoke._

_"Have pity on her, Your Highness! We stumbled upon this place by accident. You see, Sylvia here, who is our leader, has a few...erm...problems."_

_Sylvia shot Bo a confused look. The king looked suspicious, but the prince more so._

_"Problems, you say?"_

_Bo nodded._

_"Yes, Your Highness. She is a bit on the mentally retarded side. There were parasites eating away at her brain while she was in her mother's womb, you see."_

_The people of the land whispered amongst themselves about Bo's story while the rest of the pirates turned to the first mate, more confused than ever._

_"Bo, what the fuck do you think you're doing?" hissed Sylvia._

_"If they feel sorry for you and the rest of us, then maybe they won't kill us!" Bo replied._

_"You don't need to make me out to be a mental invalid, dumbass!"_

_"Yeah, well, it'll earn us more sympathy..."_

_The king and his men finished their discussion and looked back at Bo._

_"Continue your story, outsider," said the prince coldly._

_"Yeah, so there were parasites eating at her brain, right? And when she was born, she almost died because the doctors thought that the remnants of her brain might fall out her ears. But they managed to staple the brain pieces together, allowing her just enough functionality to breathe, walk, swallow, and shout senseless orders. She has made great strides for someone whose brain was eaten away at by parasites. She has amazed many a doctor. So please...don't kill her because she's, as you might say, 'stupid'. And don't kill the rest of us because she needs us to help her with her poor, miserable, mentally retarded life..." Bo finished dramatically._

_Looking around at the faces of the strange race of people, Sylvia saw with surprise that they had taken her lover's lie to heart judging by their sympathetic expressions._

_"That is such a sad story. This mentally retarded girl is so courageous..." sniffed the king. "Tell me, what are your names, outsiders?"_

_"I'm Bo. Our retarded leader is Sylvia." Bo proceeded to name the rest of the pirates._

_"It is an honor to meet such fascinating foreigners. I am King Vasska, ruler of this land Oceana. And this is my son, Prince Arnav." Vasska gestured to the handsome prince, who merely gave them a stiff nod. He had been the only Oceanan in the room that showed no sympathy for Bo's brain story._

_Vasska turned his kind eyes to Sylvia._

_"You poor, poor mental invalid... It is amazing how you survived. I do hear that brain stapling is a risky proccess, and you are lucky to have lived through the procedure. We shall hold a banquet in your honor. Now all of you, rise." _

_Hastily, the pirates got to their feet._

_"Brigette! Astasia! Did you hear this amazing story?" King Vasska called to the curtain behind the throne. Two young women bustled out from them. The pirates were surprised by their odd appearances._

_The first one wore an ornate dress as yellow as the sun itself. Her long, curly hair was nearly the same color, as were her eyes. She had fair skin, and was quite beautiful._

_The other woman was also beautiful. Her skin was much darker than the other's. She had long, straight, shimmering white hair, the same white as the moon. Like the other woman, her eyes, dress, and hair were all the same color._

_The two women bowed to the king._

_"Yes, sir," they said in unison._

_The yellow girl looked at the pirates with admiration in her eyes._

_"It was very inspiring," she said._

_"Yes, I agree, Brigette," commented the king. He looked at the white girl._

_"Astasia, any thoughts?"_

_"Same as my sister. Quite a phenomenal story."_

_"Good. I value your opinions, ladies. If you don't mind, please escort these people to some of our guest rooms." Vasska turned to his army._

_"You lot alert the townspeople of this arrival and of the banquet," the king ordered. Everyone set out to do their tasks._

_"Right this way!" called Brigette to the pirates._

_Sylvia hesitated. Then her eyes fell upon Prince Arnav. His blue eyes were burning into hers with the cold, cruel light of disgust and mistrust..._

* * *

_Bo pushed his way through the crowded banquet hall. It seemed that everyone in Oceana was attending the party, and the place was packed. Many of the residents were interested in the pirates, and many times Bo had been forced to retell his false "Sylvia's Retarded" story. He was looking for her now, actually._

_At last, he came across her leaning against a wall, her face heavily flushed, a glass of wine held weakly in her hand. He excitedly ran up to her._

_"Sylvia, there you are! I've been looking all over for you! This place is packed!" exclaimed Bo._

_Sylvia looked at him blearily through bloodshot eyes._

_"Hic...oh...i's Bo..." she slurred._

_Bo looked her over, his brow furrowed._

_"Oh, you're wasted, aren't you?" he asked._

_"I AIN'T...HIC...DRUNK..." bellowed Sylvia, dropping the glass of wine on the ground. It shattered and broke._

_Bo put his arm around Sylvia and tried to guide her away from the party._

_"Sylvia, you really are quite wasted, I think you should sleep this off..."_

_"DON' TOUCH...HIC...ME..."_

_Suddenly, Bo felt a hand grasping his arm._

_"You! Please, come with me. My brothers and I would like to hear Sylvia's story again!" said the man that held him. His eyes travelled to the drunken Sylvia._

_"I can see what you mean by mentally retarded. Poor dear."_

_"Umm, I really have to see to her..." said Bo._

_"No, I insist! You must tell the story again!"_

_Bo watched helplessly as he was pulled further away from Sylvia until she was out of sight, lost amonst the huge crowd of people..._

* * *

The cloud containing the images disappeared. Lazerus let out a gasping breath and swayed a little, wincing.

"Lazerus! Are you ok?" exclaimed Pike, putting a hand on her friend's shoulder.

Lazerus smiled weakly.

"I'm not in the best of shape right now... The mask was traumatic physically, and it will take me a little time to recover. Right now, my powers are limited."

"It was getting good!" Link whined.

"Mom..." Tetra whispered to herself, her eyes clouding over. The sight of her beloved mother had brought back many memories.

"Who was Bo?" Pike asked.

"Bo...is Bambi's father..." replied Lazerus.

"Huh?" said Link.

"That will be explained later. Get one of the other maidens to finish the story for you when you save them... There is much more to it."

Suddenly, Lazerus' expression turned dark.

"Be warned...the easiest part of your mission is over. From this point on, things will go very much downhill before the world can be saved. The important part is to stick together and follow The Prophecy... And Link, I heard your Ocarina of Time song briefly... Keep it with you. It will aid you further." Link gulped nervously thinking about the ocarina...

Lazerus continued, "A fated battle lies in the future... This is a battle we cannot fight alone. I have some strength left, and using it I will gather the first of the recruits."

"Recruits?" Tetra repeated, confused.

Lazerus nodded.

"We will need the help of certain persons from beyond Oceana, people from where you live. We shall form an alliance of these people, all of which come from your home: the Great Sea."

"Oh, crap...we know these people, don't we?" Link moaned. He knew many people, and none of which he was particularly fond of being an allie to. People like Komali...Daphness...Saria...Medli...and Makar, to name a few.

Lazerus smirked as though she read his mind.

"I think you might," she said. But then her face turned serious once more.

"Head east from here. Your real trials shall begin... Find the other five God Tools, the other three Masks of Termina, the Second Prophecy, and the other maidens... Keep an eye out for Aryll and Bambi. If you find them, please bring them to the Four Sword Shrine... They need to know their destiny. And both girls are still alive, mind you."

Lazerus eyed Link.

"Speaking of the Four Sword Shrine, nephew...there will be a time when you will need to pull that sword and accept your own destiny."

Lazerus slowly got to her feet. Her struggle to do so put worry in Pike's eyes.

"I must go...we will meet again soon..." said Lazerus, wincing.

"Are you fit to travel?" Pike asked, frowning.

"I am recovering quickly, thanks to Tetra and her gift... I still have a ways to go before I am fully healed, but I do have enough magic in me right now to get to where I'm going. Now all of you...stick together, and remember everything I told you today. I will be back with our 'army' a good while from now, but rest assured, we will come to your aid in the future. Farewell." And with those words, Lazerus disappeared.

Pike rose quickly, but let out a soft groan and touched her wounded head.

"I know we have to go east, but let me try exercising this healing power of mine before we do..." said Tetra, and that she did. Link and Pike were healed significantly, and Tetra did the same for herself.

The group returned to where they tied their horses, each one silent and in their own thoughts. Link thought about the mysterious Ocarina of Time and his odd experience with it... Pike thought of the story that Lazerus had shown them about their parents and wondered how it would end... Tetra, meanwhile, thought about the future and the day she would no longer be the damsel in distress.

That day would be a lot sooner than she thought...

* * *

Link, Pike, and Tetra rode into a town east of the Great Forest. Pike said that is was known as Ipoli. It seemed untouched by Majora's wrath, as the streets were bustling with happy people like in a normal town.

Link bumped around on Tetra's horse, clinging to her waist.

"Tetra, this horse is too bumpy! I want my own horse!" he whined.

"What? Link, the horse is perfectly smoothe," replied Tetra.

"No, I don't mean that the horse has a bumpy texture, I mean that it bumps around too much! You know! Like bouncy, bumpy, bouncy boun --"

"Ok, I get it!"

"Stop fighting..." sighed Pike.

"Hey..." whispered a voice next to them. The trio turned to see a shady old peddler holding a sleek black horse by its halter. Link, Tetra, and Pike stopped and looked at him.

"What do you want, you stupid beggar?" Tetra asked rudely.

"I couldn't help but hear you were looking for a horse..." said the peddler.

"Yes, and that means you were eavesdropping," replied Pike, looking at the peddler suspiciously.

The peddler bowed quickly.

"Oh! Princess! I didn't realize that was you. I don't mean to be rude, but your two friends here were discussing the matter of horses rather loudly, and I couldn't help but overhear..." The old man looked at Link and Tetra. "My apologies, young sir and mistress..."

"Cut the crap, what do you want?" Tetra asked as she and Link eyed the man's horse.

"I have this horse. I'm moving, you see, and I cannot keep it..." The peddler's eyes glinted with a strange yet incredibly subtle light.

"This young boy can have it," he said, looking at Link. "It's a fine horse...well trained. I cherished him, but I think he deserves better than what I can give him..." The poorman smiled, and his eyes glinted again.

"How much?" Link asked. Tetra and Pike exchanged glances.

"For free! I just want to see him go to a good home. You seem like such a nice young boy..."

"Well, that's pretty much good enough for me," said Link with a shrug. He slid off Tetra's horse and grabbed a hold of the black horse's halter. He met the steed's gaze for a minute and shuddered... There was something "off" about the horse, if you will...

"I hope you don't mind riding bareback," said the man.

"Who cares, as long as I got my own horse!" Link cheered, trying to pull himself on it.

"This horse is slippery... Do you oil it?"

Tetra rolled her eyes. The peddler helped Link up.

"I assure you, I do not believe in oiling horses. It's bad for the enviorment. Anyway, take good care of him... He's such a nice horse..." The peddler smirked, waved good-bye, and walked off.

"That was weird..." commented Pike as she urged her horse forward. Tetra followed.

"I'll say. Be careful about that horse, Link. Maybe it self-destructs or something," she called over her shoulder. Link rode up next to her.

"This horse IS really well-tamed... Not to mention it's a lot less bumpy than your horse. And a lot less fat. And better looking," he commented.

* * *

Maybe the horse was all those things. But maybe...there was more to it than the eye could see.

Lazerus' words would soon be proved correct: their journey was just beginning, and things would all go downhill from that point on...


	9. The Breakup Point

_**LOL, here it is at last: chapter 9. Sorry for the delay, but I've been having some problems with fatigue lately, not to mention a TON of school crap.**_

**_Go to my user profile page, and you will see a link to a map of Oceana. It might help you to better understand Majora's plan in this chapter._**

**_By the way, sorry about the really cold ending of the chapter... It's really angsty. Poor Dark..._**

**_REVIEW SO I KNOW YOU'RE ALIVE!_**

* * *

_**Chapter 9 -- The Breakup Point**_

Thunder clapped overhead and lightning illuminated the sky. A dark wind ruffled the long grass of the fields, accompanied by streaking rain. In the midst of the chaotic weather were the dynamic trio: Link, Pike, and Tetra.

"The horses are getting scared! I think we should set up camp; I want to try the new supplies we got in Ipoli!" Tetra called loudly from the back of the threesome's single file line, struggling to be heard over the violent wind.

"I'll have to agree with Tetra," commented Link, pulling at his strange new horse's ears, trying to get it to keep on course. For some reason, the steed kept trying to sneak off west.

"Get on the right path, dipshit!" Link snapped at the animal, smacking it on the ass. The black horse let out an offended snort and jerked his head, trying to rid his ears of his rider's hands.

"We'll stop in a little while. Let's at least find suitable sheltering from the storm," Pike said. She glanced at Link.

"Having trouble?"

"This damn horse keeps trying to spring off in the wrong direction!" Link snarled.

"It's probably just afraid of the storm," said Tetra. "Mine's a little jumpy too..."

"Dammit, I'm soaked and my horse is being a stupid dick! We'd better find shelter fast!" Link growled. His horse made another attempt to go off in a different direction, so Link hit it on the butt again.

A deafening roll of thunder sounded, followed by the biggest crack of lightning yet. Link, Tetra, and Pike watched in horror as the lightning bolt connected with the dark trees that loomed before them, and in moments, those were illuminated with blazing fire.

"FIRE!" screamed Tetra. Her horse reared up, let out a loud, frightened whinny, and dashed off, Tetra barely clinging on.

"TETRA! TETRA, COME BACK!" Pike yelled frantically.

"I CAN'T, THE HORSE --!" That was the last they heard from Tetra before she was swallowed up from view and hearing by the rain, thunder and lightning.

"TETRA!" cried Link. He tried to send his horse after hers, but the steed fled off in the direction it had wanted to go in.

"LINK!" Pike shrieked.

Panicked, she knew she was all alone as her horse ran away with her back where they came...

* * *

Prince Komali stared out at the churning water as he stood on the highest cliff in Dragon Roost, the one where Medli the Earth Sage always played her harp. He sighed and leaned against the wooden fence. The weather was so bleak...that's just how he felt. 

An event occured that day that had been happening every day for about three months ever since he returned home from his journey: Komali's father nagged him and criticized him about his relationship with Saria, the Forest Sage.

What business did the Rito chieftain have in his son's life anyway, Komali wondered. Who he dated was none of his father's concern. The dick... However, the flame in his relationship with Saria was blowing out. He realized that he was only staying with her to spite his father. Truth be told, Saria was an evil controlling bitch.

"Komali!" called a voice behind the Rito prince. Komali turned to see Saria, the one and only.

Prince Komali smiled weakly.

"Hey Saria..."

Saria frowned.

"Komali...your people were giving me those looks again... They always glare at me whenever I pass them. Weren't you trying to convince your father to let us be together?"

Komali sighed.

"I was trying, honest. But dad kept interrupting me and telling me how I needed to get with another Rito if I ever wanna be chieftain..." He looked back out at the water.

"I have a decision to make, Saria."

Saria looked angry.

"How could you even question your love for me?"

"I..."

"YOU LOVE ME BECAUSE I TOLD YOU TO! REMEMBER! YOU HAVE NO CHOICE, DUMBASS!" Saria snarled evilly.

"Er...yes ma'am..." Komali squeaked.

"Huh. Well, well, well, there's trouble in paradise, is there?" sneered another voice. Komali and Saria looked to see the Earth Sage Medli heading towards them, a sour smirk on her face. She had been cruelest of all to Komali and Saria, for she was still bitter towards the Rito prince after their breakup, though she had been the one who instigated all the problems.

"What do you want, bitch?" hissed Saria.

"Ooh, have I angered the green-haired rat queen?" Medli taunted.

"WHY YOU --"

"Guys, stop fighting!" whimpered Komali. Medli and Saria turned to glare at him so hard he flinched.

"Or...carry on..." he squeaked.

"You don't belong here! You're plagued with infinite youth! Komali will grow, and you will forever be a child! You can't stay with him here on Dragon Roost. Besides, I can see how sick of you he's getting!" snarled Medli.

"You can't tell him or me who we can or can't love!" retorted Saria.

"I'm not telling you that! I'm just saying that you dumbasses are gonna get your hearts broken for being in a pointless relationship, if you even stay together for much longer!"

"CARE TO SAY THAT TO MY FACE?"

"Uh -- I just did..."

The argument would have gone on like that for hours, Komali guessed. But it was cut short by a strange, strange visitor...

Medli and Saria snapped into silence as a puff of purple smoke appeared before them, vanishing almost as quickly as it came to reveal a beautiful young woman with long purple hair worn in two braids, fair skin, purple eyes, and a purple gown; she looked to be about 16 years old. The young woman moaned weakly and fell at Komali's feet. The Rito prince was stunned.

"What the --?"

"Holy shit! It's a purple haired freak!" gasped Medli.

"Please..." uttered the strange woman in a voice that was barely audible.

Komali knelt beside her.

"Saria, fetch some water, would you?" he requested urgently. Saria glared steadily at Komali for a moment before setting off to do her assigned task.

The newcomer said nothing more for a while. Komali, Saria, and Medli took her to Komali's bedroom and set her on the bed. She slept for a while with the three kids hovering nearby until finally she woke up.

"Miss...? Um, are you...like...ok or something?" Komali asked.

The woman sat up abrubtly, but winced.

"You're Prince Komali, right?" she asked with a desperate edge to her voice.

"That'd be me..." Komali answered steadily.

"Excellent. I was hoping I had landed on the right island..."

"Woah, woah, woah...wait...just tell me who you are, how you know who I am, and how you know where I live. I hope you know that I'm not interested in sleeping with stalkers for free," said Komali.

"KOMALI, YOU DICK, I'LL --!" Medli clamped a hand over Saria's mouth to keep her quiet.

The strange purple maiden sighed.

"Well, it's a long story. However, it is one you must hear... My name is Lazerus, and I come from a hidden kingdom called Oceana..." Lazerus told the story of the Four Sword, her and her sisters' purpose, and the Prophecy; she talked about Link, Aryll, Tetra, and Bambi's parentage and all that had been going on with the Majora deal, yaddah yaddah.

"Wow...that took a good half an hour or so out of my life. Thanks," snorted Medli.

"You bitch, why do you want to sleep with Komali?" Saria demanded.

"What? I never said I wanted to sleep with Komali," Lazerus said, frowning.

"Well, you were hinting at it!"

"I wasn't..."

"Don't lie to me, I'm the Forest Sage! I can read minds!"

"Saria, you can't read minds," snapped Medli.

"SARIA, SHUT UP, WOULD YOU! JEEZ...I'M SO SICK OF YOU!" Komali yelled suddenly. The air filled with dead silence.

Saria's expression was unreadable for a time. Then she let out a whimper and fled the room. Medli looked on, both shocked and pleased.

"Oh...that wasn't my fault, was it?" Lazerus asked softly.

Komali sighed, shut his eyes and shook his head.

"No, it was bound to happen sooner or later," he replied.

"Anyway, fuck Saria. What is it you want?" Medli asked.

"A big battle looms ahead of us, one that even the Six heroes of the Prophecy cannot fight alone. I need the help of you, Link's friends. I will also need to see the other sages and the king..."

"Oh, you mean my main man Daphness? He's with his bride-to-be on vacation. The other sages are at Windfall as far as I know," said Komali.

"I don't think this is a good idea..." Medli commented uncertainly.

Lazerus sighed.

"Trust me, it must be done. Now we need to discuss this in detail, and then we must find the king and the other sages..."

* * *

"Ok...now this plan... Oceana, as you know, is divided into five sections: northern, southern, eastern, western, and a small middle zone. We can split rule over these areas among us. I alone will rule in Oceana's castle and the northern section. Ganondorf and Ciara will take the southern territory. Agahnim and Vaati get eastern, and Shadow, you and Dark get western. That means that since we are in western territory now, this manor and everything else in this territory are under the rule of you and your brother, so in short, you will be out of the hair of the rest of us. Now, in the middle section lies the Light Shrine -- we are keeping the Dark Mirror there now, and that will be how we can quickly get to eachother's bases. My base will be Oceana Castle, Agahnim's and Vaati's will be Angel Palace, which is in the eastern section; Ciara and Ganondorf will get Serefina's Church in the south, and as I said before, Shadow and Dark will reside here in the Old Manor. Any questions so far?" said Majora in a business-like tone as he stood at a table with Vaati, Ciara, Ganondorf, Agahnim, and Shadow gathered around him. 

Shadow raised his hand.

"What, Shadow?"

"Umm, yeah," began Shadow. "Does this have something to do with Capture the Flag?"

Everyone exchanged glances.

"Uh, no. Why?" Majora asked, annoyance towards the younger foe creeping into his face.

"Well, you know...with the bases you're talking about and stuff. What will we use for the flags?"

"We're not playing Capture the Flag, Shadow," he snapped, towering above Shadow Link. Shadow cowered slightly.

"We're not?" he squeaked.

"No, dumbass!" Ciara hissed.

"Oh...well, you see, I was kind of looking forward to --"

"There must be silence, my pet..." purred Ganondorf, pulling Shadow to him. Shadow always wondered why Ganondorf was so friendly to him. He always figured it was because he was awesome.

"Cough -- pedophile -- cough," fake-coughed Agahnim.

"That's all well and good, but let us continue our conversation," said Majora. "Now we will all keep watch over the middle section, but each pair will have main rule over their area. But of course, I get absolute power simply because I'm me."

"Sounds reasonable," said Agahnim slowly. "But who will take the slave girl?" As if on cue, Bambi peeked in the room, wondering bitterly what they wanted with her now.

"Hmm...we can share her," said Majora.

"Yes, but where will she be imprisoned mainly?" inquired Agahnim.

"I don't want that stupid little thieving rat near me!" snarled Ganondorf.

"I'm too good to have anything to do with such a horrible person," Vaati sniffed, turning his nose up.

Majora sighed. "Well --"

"I'll take her!" Shadow announced loudly. He and Dark were the lowest ranking, least respected members of the Dark Ones, and Shadow Link thought it would be nice to have a lacky for once as he was one to the other evil villains. And besides, Dark seemed to like having her around, and Shadow was happy if his brother was happy.

"Fine," Majora said with some indifference. "Just keep an eye on her, and don't get too soft."

"I won't," Shadow promised.

Bambi watched, not pleased that these decisions were being made for her, but relieved that she would not be at the mercy of angry, dangerous villains like Vaati, Agahnim, and Ganondorf, and happy not to have to stay with the just plain demented likes of Majora or Ciara.

Majora noticed Bambi eavesdropping and he smiled coldly.

"Oh, well, at least we won't have to tell her that she's staying in this manor here in the western territory, seeing as she overheard and everything." The other villains turned to glare at Bambi, but she held their gaze with unspoken defiance.

"Oh, what a spirited little scrap you are," chortled Agahnim, approaching the prisoner, pinching her cheek and shaking it. Then he shoved her to the ground, and the others laughed. Although Bambi was angry, she was smart enough to know that if she valued her life, she would not dare to speak a word in her defense. She concealed her fury, but her cheeks flushed angrily.

"That's enough prisoner fun for the moment. Now we should all go to our separate places. And Shadow, go find Dark at No Man's Bridge so you two can finish the dirty work of killing off Link," said Majora. His followers filed out.

Vaati was the last leaving, and Majora stopped him.

"Oh...yes, Majora?" Vaati asked, avoiding his leader's eyes. The wind mage's red eyes widened a little as Majora lifted his chin to look him in the face.

"I would like to see you over at Oceana Castle later...there are some things I want to talk to you about," he said, smiling sexily as a mischevious light danced in his eyes...

* * *

"WOULD YOU SLOW DOWN? JEEZ, YOU TOTALLY WEREN'T WORTH THE -- oh, wait. You were free. Now I see why," grumbled Link. 

He was at the mercy of the still dashing horse. Though they were many miles away from the fire now, the strange animal was still running. It didn't slow down at all whatsoever. Link wondered how it could keep going so far so fast even though it was obviously exhausted and out of breath judging by its heaving sides.

Link was beginning to think that there was somewhere specific this horse wanted to go. It had been running alongside a river for a while, and Link finally saw a bridge in the distance, which the horse was keeping an eye on. What was going on?

At last they reached the bride. Wheezing from all the running, the horse stopped and thirstily lapped at the water in the river.

"You stupid thing! Take me back where we came from! Take me back, I say! MUSH!" Link commanded, slapping the horse on the ass again. It snorted but did not budge.

Half an hour or so passed as the horse continued to mill around by the bridge. Link was, of course, on his last nerve, but did not dare dismount for fear of being abandoned by the creature. He wished it would just move somewhere else...

Link's thoughts wandered to the whereabouts of Tetra and Pike. It seemed he was losing everyone: Tetra, Pike, Aryll, and Bambi...well -- he didn't really care about Bambi. But that was beside the point.

A low growl sounded from some tall reeds on the other side of the bridge, jerking Link from his thoughts.

"Uh...is something there?" he called hesitantly. The horse lifted its head and perked its ears.

The growl grew louder and progressed into a snarl. The reeds began to shift as something moved closer... Link was getting quite nervous, and apparently so was the horse. It snorted fearfully, stomped its foot, and paced back a little.

Snarling turned into barking, announcing the emergence of what seemed like a large dog from the reeds.

"Oh, it's just a dog. Big deal," grunted Link. "All it does is snarl and foam at the mouth. Just a silly little dog..."

The horse's eyes widened. It whinnied fearfully, reared up, and began to dash straight ahead, the dog at its heels. As he rode, Link turned in his seat to watch the "dog".

"Hmm...that's a pretty big dog. I wonder what breed it is? I think I know this one...hmm... Is it a beagle? ...Nah. A hound dog? Or a dalmation like Pongo? I don't think so, but I am quite fond of Pongo... Or what about an Irish wolfhound?"

The dog snarled and yapped, biting at the horse's legs.

"Is it a pug?"

"OWOOOOOO!" howled the dog, eyeing Link frustratedly.

"OH! OH! I KNOW! It's a WOLF! It is, isn't it?" Link said. The wolf glared at him maliciously.

"Wait...a wolf... Oh, crap, that's not good." The boy hero turned back around and whacked the horse on the ass again.

"MOVE FASTER YOU STUPID HORSE! CAN'T YA SEE WE'RE BEING CHASED!" Link was beginning to panic.

Horse and rider fled blindly for a bit, the wolf still hot on their heels.

Link stared fearfully back at the savage beast, only to be nearly thrown off the horse due to an abrupt stop.

"Woah!"

Looking forward, Link saw that the horse had nearly run into the river, which now curved in front of them. The frightened animal turned to face the wolf, cowering.

"NO! RUN!" Link screamed.

The wolf seemed to grin with victory. It crouched, bunching its muscles in preparation to spring. The horse ducked down a bit in a cowering pose. Link closed his eyes tightly, bracing himself for the end...but...instead the animal noises stopped. He felt as though he were sinking downward... And then the next sound that filled his ears was laughter. Utterly confused, Link opened his eyes.

There was no longer any wolf. Where the foul beast had stood was what looked like an evil clone of Link with black hair and laughter-filled red eyes. Dark Link...? No. No, there was something about this boy that differed from Dark. The stranger's laugh rang out, and it was different than Dark Link's.

Then Link noticed that he was no longer high up on a horse. Instead, he was so low to the ground now that his knees rested on the earth. It took him a moment to realize that he was no longer on the back of a graceful black horse, but instead on the back of the REAL Dark Link, who was laughing along with the other clone. The danger of the situation dawned on Link, and he screeched and rolled off of Dark Link.

"Hehehe...it feels good to finally have your ass off my back. I swear, my rear is bruised from all the slaps you dealt it," sneered Dark Link who remained on his stomach, propped up by his elbows as he gazed at Link with black humor in his red eyes.

"Wow, how gross!" giggled the other one.

"What the...? Dark Link, you're supposed to be DEAD! And how the fuck did you get cloned! And what happened to the horse and the wolf?" Link blurted out.

Dark Link and the other boy exchanged glances, then both lunged at Link, grabbed a hold of his arms, and held him to the ground. Link cried out and struggled.

"That's so you won't get away from us," explained Dark. "Now let me answer your questions... I was revived by Majora and the Dark Mirror. I am alive once more."

Dark Link nodded to his grinning look-alike.

"And he is no clone. He is my brother Shadow Link."

Link looked from Dark to Shadow. They both were basically twinly, but there were differences. Dark had a voice lower than Link's, and Shadow's voice was higher than Link's. Dark had always been very thin, and still was now, if not more so. His brother was a little plump, but not too much so. Looking at them closer, Link realized how different they really were. The twins both had a different air about them: Dark was his serious self while Shadow seemed more youthful, naive, and...well...stupid.

"You're just some stupid clone of me made out of dark stuff like hate and shadows! How can you have family, huh?" scoffed Link.

Dark twisted Link's wrist as he answered the question he had been given. Link squeaked in pain.

"You see, the thing people fail to understand is that shadows and dark selves are a race of people, just like you humans. We have lives all our own, lives that began in the Dark World. The Dark World has an organized government and everything. It isn't some place where bad souls live. It's an actual community."

"Furthermore, the more darkness a person has in their heart, the more dark selves they create. Usually a person only has one dark self, but you provided enough hate and sadness to have twins!" added Shadow.

"Have twins? You make it sound like I was pregnant or something! I ain't been pregnant," snapped Link.

"Well, whatever. I phrased that wrong. But boys can get pregnant in the Dark World, you know," said Shadow.

"That's gross," Link commented.

"Stop talking about mpreg so I can answer the other questions!" hissed Dark. Link and Shadow fell silent.

"You are such a fool, Link. Shadow and I WERE the horse and wolf. Majora has granted us each the ability to change into an animal."

Link gulped. The enemy was strong, he knew that. But it seemed that the members of the Dark Ones had powers greater than he knew. If they could turn into animals to do various tasks and hide their real identities, then what other things could they do?

Link glared at his opponents, showing great defiance despite his pinned and prone position on the grass.

"I knew that there was something wrong with the horse I was riding. And there was -- no, IS: I was riding a virgin horse, and everyone knows you can't ride a virgin!" he spat icily.

Dark let out an enraged snarl and grabbed Link's neck. Link let out a choked cry of pain as Dark Link's nails dug into his skin.

_"THERE'S NOTHING WRONG ABOUT THE FACT THAT I HAVEN'T LOST MY VIRGINITY YET!"_ Dark screamed, all his rage and hostility contained in that single sentence.

"Yeah! It's ok if he's a virgin!" Shadow added in defense of his brother.

"No it's not! Are YOU a virgin?" Link managed to utter, gazing at Shadow coldly.

"Well, no...Dark is the only virgin here right now," Shadow Link admitted.

"But his sex life doesen't matter! Nothing will matter to you soon, for we have been sent to kill you!" said Shadow.

Link glared at Dark.

"So this whole thing was a trap! How come that beggar in Ipoli didn't know what you truly were?"

Dark chuckled softly.

"Idiot. You thought that Ipoli had not felt the wrath of Majora? It looked normal, but it wasn't. Every single member of the town in under our control! There is no town that we have not harmed!" he declared.

"The evil side is winning and you know it. We're going to kill you and your friends off one by one now that you're separated. Besides, we already have your woman!" said Shadow.

"You bastards took Tetra!" Link asked, outraged.

"No, not her. It was a different one. A blonde one," Shadow replied.

"Tetra IS blonde! Which blonde are you talking about? There are too many blondes in this story."

Dark rolled his eyes.

"Bambi," he said.

"Oh. Why should I care? And she's not my woman, she's my cousin. That would be gross if I was in a relationship with her," snorted Link.

"You have less morals than us if you don't even value family," Dark said sternly.

"How did you know she was my cousin?"

"Well, you just told us, for one," replied Shadow.

"Oh..." said Link.

"You'll never get far if you don't understand the value of family. But it is not nessecary for you to learn that now, seeing as we are about to kill you," growled Dark.

"Stupid insecure virgin! You won't kill me!"

Dark Link raised a brow.

"Oh, we WILL kill you. And not only that, we will humiliate you while doing so." He and Shadow let Link up and drew their swords.

"Fight us!" Shadow spat.

Link tried to hide his fear about taking on two opponents the way he always handled fear: insults.

"Tch. What's the point? I don't need to fight little Mr. Virgin and his brother Fatty-Thunder-Thighs," scoffed Link.

Dark and Shadow exchanged glances, then flashed Link identical smirks.

"You're just scared. Are you afraid we're gonna mess up your hair, pussy?" Dark sneered.

Link swallowed. Truthfully, he WAS afraid for his hair, but knew it was best not to let the enemy know.

"Let's just all stop talking and get on with the bloodshed, ok?" Shadow said impatiently.

"Yes. Let us delay no longer..." Dark said in a low tone, licking his lips as if he could taste what he believed would be an impending victory.

Dark and Shadow lunged at Link. Link squealed and tried to get out of the way, but Shadow tripped him and made to stab him in the back. However, Link threw him off, but was confronted by Dark as he grabbed his hair and shoved his face into the dirt, causing Link to remain on the ground. Link thrashed about wildly and managed to kick Dark hard in the legs, distracting him enough to let go. As quickly as he could, Link got back on his feet.

_Damn... If only I knew how to use the Triforce of Courage to my advantage. Maybe I should try focusing. That's what Tetra always told me to do,_ Link thought.

He tried to focus on courage, but his opponents made that almost impossible. Shadow crashed into his side, knocking Link to the ground. He straddled the prone blonde and sliced Link's chest with his sword. Link let out a cry, but still managed to scratch Shadow hard in the face. Shadow screeched and drew back, freeing Link. Link grabbed his neck and knocked Shadow's sword away before pinning him to the ground and trying to slit him with the Master Sword.

Link would have done so had Dark not come to the aid of his screaming brother. Link gasped as Dark stabbed him in the back but reacted quickly enough so that only the tip went through his flesh. He spun around, grabbed Dark by the belt, and yanked him to the ground and tried to stab him in the chest. Unfortunately, Shadow grabbed Link by the leg and pulled him away from Dark.

Link kicked out at Shadow and freed his leg, and was about to land an attack on him when Shadow dealt him a hard blow to the head with the hilt of his sword. Link felt his mind go blank for a second and he sprawled on the grass. In seconds, both Dark and Shadow were on top of him.

"This is the end for you!" declared Dark. He and Shadow stabbed at Link's chest, but Link kept himself protected by folding his arms across his chest. Sadly, this meant that his arms received the attack, and he cried out loudly in pain.

"Move your arms so we can kill you!" snapped Shadow.

For some reason, in the terror of the moment, Link felt strangely calm. For the first time in the battle, he could focus on that which needed to be focused on most. Before his opponents could react, Link thought hard about courage, and with all his strength, pushed Dark and Shadow back and thrusted the Master Sword at them.

"OW! S-STOP THAT!" screamed Dark as the blade ripped his tunic and cut into his stomach deeply.

"B-BASTARD!" Shadow stuttered. Link slit his arm.

Frightened and wounded by the Master Sword's power-up, Link's enemies began to flee.

"THIS WON'T BE THE LAST YOU SEE OF US!" Dark yelled over his shoulder. In moments he and his brother were out of sight.

Panting, Link dropped his sword as the pain of the stab wounds in his arms washed over him, followed by his other wounds. His body quavering from the adrenaline rush of the battle, Link fell to his knees and hunched forward in pain. He was alone, wounded, without a horse, and without food and water...

* * *

"I can't BELIEVE that! We could have killed him for sure! I didn't think he had any tricks up his sleeve!" Dark wheezed, gasping for breath as he and Shadow entered their manor. They had run nearly the entire way. 

"I know... But hey, at least we're back here at the manor. It's like I said before -- it's ours now, Dark," said Shadow, wiping a bit of red blood off his cheek.

"Yeah, and that's nice and all, but Majora will have our heads when he finds out we failed. You know that..." Dark sighed.

Shadow frowned.

"Well, it's kind of his fault in a way, right?" he asked.

"What do you mean?"

"We had so many chances to kill him off easily, and he was all like, 'nooooo, we're gonna be creative and original and come up with overly-elaborate plans'! Why doesen't he ever want to do the easy, sensible thing?"

Dark shrugged.

"You're right. Maybe he has savantism or something. You know, that disease where you can't do simple stuff like put down the toilet seat but you can memorize the whole phone book and stuff like that?" he said.

"Maybe," Shadow agreed.

"Oh...you're injured..." said a voice softly. Dark and Shadow looked up to see Bambi standing there, looking them over, her eyes locking on each of their wounds in turn. Dark felt his cheeks grow hot under her searching silver gaze.

"Yeah...it's not serious..." he mumbled. Shadow looked at him, wondering why his twin was so flustered all of a sudden...

Bambi sighed. She didn't like having to be a slave, but she at least owed Dark something for the times he stood up for her. And besides, doing tasks like healing the wounded was part of her job as a servant.

"Well, let me help you," she offered, coming closer.

"Me first! I'm nearly bleeding to death over here, you know!" Shadow said irritably.

"Fine," Bambi replied simply, leading Shadow into another room to tend to his wounds.

* * *

Dark lay upon his bed, staring out at the rain-soaked window. His body throbbed painfully from his battle with Link. Bambi was still tending to Shadow's wounds, and anger burned in his stomach as he heard Shadow shout words of harsh criticizm to the enslaved prisoner. 

Dark thought over and over again about why he and Shadow had not defeated Link. He and his twin had all the advantages. How could they have lost? But Dark was jerked out of his thoughts when he heard the sound of his bedroom door opening.

"Sorry that took so long," said Bambi, walking in and shutting the door behind her. She was holding bandages and other medical things.

"It's ok..." Dark muttered, glancing over his shoulder at her and quickly looking back at the window so she would not see him blushing.

"Are you badly injured?" Bambi asked, moving up next to the bed.

"No, why?"

"Your face is red. It looks like you're in pain..." Bambi gently grabbed his shoulders and pulled him into a sitting position.

"It's nothing serious, I swear," Dark promised, meeting her eyes.

"I'll be the judge of that," Bambi replied as she started to clean out the wound on Dark's stomach.

"I heard my brother yelling at you. Sorry about that... You haven't been treated very well amongst my fellows, have you?" Dark asked.

"I haven't." Bambi looked into his eyes, her expression suspicious. "And I find it strange that you don't join them in hurting me. Why is that?"

Dark hesitated.

"I just don't think that torturing you would help our mission," he said, trying to sound cold in order to cover up the truth.

Bambi straightened up and glared, clearly offended by his tone of voice.

"Am I supposed to be of some use to Majora's plan?" she asked harshly.

"Not that I know of," Dark answered curtly, looking away. He badly wanted to drop the subject.

"Oh, of course...he wants me around just as a prisoner. But he got sick of me and dumped me on you and your brother. I suppose it's never any different for me though. I'm always winding up as someone's slave, tool, or prisoner. You know that too. While I was posessed by Vaati, I was still able to watch all he did in my body. And I know that you knew I was posessed. You were very faithful to Vaati, and I guess that made you a prisoner too in your own way. You were Vaati's pet, and you willingly let him touch you and show disgusting affection. If you have feelings for Vaati, then why are you on opposite sides with him on the subject of how I am treated?"

"I don't have feelings for Vaati. I never did, you...you idiot!" Dark knew that he was messing everything up with his rude defensiveness, but he didn't want to seem weak.

"Then why did you have such a romantic relationship with him while he was in my body?"

Dark was more uncomfortable than ever at this question, but there was no getting around it.

"I was distracted, ok? It didn't seem like him while he was in someone else's body! It just didn't!" he yelled. Dark Link felt guilty about talking to her this way, but he didn't think it was best to get too soft. Majora would get on his case about that and most likely punish him severely.

"So you felt as though I was the one touching you? It sounds to me as though you were using his terrible deed to get naughty treatment from my body!" snapped Bambi. "Is that it!"

"No, I --"

Bambi's eyes blazed with hurt.

"You were using me, using my body to get the affection you lack. Not only am I constantly a prisoner, but I am used too. I was used by my friends as a decoy, and because of that I stand here before you now. I don't think I will ever stop caring about Link, Tetra and the others no matter what they did to me because they are my family. But I have no reason to care about a weak soul like you. I can stand the harsh words and physical abuse of the others, but I can't stand your weakness and your need to be a lowly follower to anyone who asks you. Then you go and satisfy yourself from the wrong doings of others." Bambi dropped the bandages and other supplies on the bed next to Dark.

"Help yourself," she snorted, quickly leaving the room. The door slammed behind her.

Dark sat staring at the door for a moment, completely stunned. Then he sighed and looked down. All the things she had said were true. But maybe her visit just now would not have gone so bitterly if he had said the right things.

Perhaps he should have admitted that he really was a prisoner. He had been like a dog to Vaati, and now to Majora. He served Majora only because he felt he had to do it, sort of like paying off a debt for Majora's ressurecting him. Majora treated all his followers well except for Dark and Shadow. Dark figured it was because they were younger and weaker, and could easily be ganged up on. Majora would hit, slap, or back hand Dark and his brother whenever they did something wrong, but Bambi was never around when he did it. Dark missed his home in the Dark World, and felt bad that Shadow had to leave there to share his fate. He didn't like being treated badly, and that sadness was made worse by the fact that his beloved brother had to be hurt too.

Another thing was that Dark felt that he should have been more clear when he said that Bambi's body had distracted him from the fact that it was really Vaati he was facing. He had known that it was Vaati merely posessing a girl, that was true. But he felt drawn to the presence and feel of the victimized girl, not Vaati. And now Bambi thought that he had merely thought of the posessed Bambi as a way to quench some sexual thirst.

_If that were true_,Dark thought, _then I wouldn't still be a virgin._

But there were truths to the things she had accused him of, Dark knew. As he turned and looked out the window at the bleak sky above, he thought about how he truly was just someone who would bend over backward to please some master like a stupid dog.


	10. Petals on the River

_**Holy crap, I am soooo sorry this took so long to come out! This chapter is super long, and I've been super busy, so yeah...you get the picture. But it's out now!**_

**_Jeez, I noticed that this chapter is really romantic..._**

**_Anyway, I've begun a second version of Hidden Fire. It won't be up on the site for a long time though._**

**_SEQUEL NEWS_**

**_Also, I have been planning The Sister's sequel. I don't know why, seeing as this story isn't even half way to being finished. But the sequel's going to be pretty good, and far different from WW, HF, and TS. It's called Fair Lady. The main characters in this story will no longer be the main characters in FL -- they will still be a major part in it, but won't be the heroes. Aryll is the main character. You will finally get to see some time skippage, as Fairy Lady takes place 6 years after The Sister's end. That means that Aryll is about 12, and Link and company are 18 or 19. Here are some random facts:_**

**_-The story starts out with Bambi in labor with her first child_**

**_-THERE WILL BE MPREG, AS IN MALE PREGNANCY!_**

**_-Aryll is the hero, along with Isabella (the little girl from Casterwaul) and Ivan (the little gang leader kid on Windfall)_**

**_-There are THREE enemies, one of which you will meet briefly in this story, another of which is in The Prince of Ny-Potho_**

**_That's all for now!_**

**_REVIEW FOR THE SAKE OF ZORA SEX!_**

* * *

**__**

_**Chapter 10 -- Petals on the River**_

Dark jolted awake from his terrible nightmare. He lay there for a moment panting and sweating, trying to calm his nerves. Such a strange dream... In it, a voice told him a long poem while the images of his pitiful life played before him. Dark didn't quite know why something like that would scare him so bad...

It was when he finally started to calm down did Dark Link notice a heavy weight on his back. He grew alarmed momentarily until he looked to see Shadow asleep on top of him. Dark knocked Shadow off his back, causing his twin to awaken.

"What do you think you're doing in my bed! You have your own!" Dark snapped.

"Sorry...I had a nightmare..." Shadow murmured softly in reply.

"Well, you could have soothed yourself, you know. We're getting too old to sleep in the same bed together."

"But it was scary!"

"Yeah, yeah, I'm sure it was. But I sleep naked, you know!" Dark said, pointing to his...erm...uh.

Shadow looked at Dark's...umm -- then down at his own.

"So what? I sleep naked too!" he retorted haughtily.

"You dope, that's the problem!"

"I told you, I had a bad nightmare!" Shadow complained. He gazed into Dark's eyes pleadingly, begging for understanding and forgiveness. That look was one that Dark gave in to all the time. Dark Link sighed.

"Tell me about your dream..."

"I was looking back on the worst parts of my life, while in the background was a woman's voice telling me some long, weird poem... I don't know why it was so scary, but it was..." Shadow quietly told him.

Dark swallowed. His heart pounded briefly from surprise.

"I had the same dream," he admitted.

Shadow's bright, youthful red eyes widened.

"You did?" he asked, incredulous.

Dark nodded.

"Yeah...I know how you feel."

Shadow hugged Dark quickly and tightly.

"We're still nude, you know," Dark reminded him uneasily. But regardless, he hugged Shadow back anyway. And not in a sexual way, mind you perverted people out there.

The moment Dark and Shadow shared then was, as they new, like so many they had experienced before as younger children. When they were little, they were inseperable, and that bond continued now through their lives.

Feeling a great deal more comforted, Shadow broke off and looked at Dark worriedly.

"Do you think it was, you know...some kind of sign?"

Dark considered the thought for a moment. His spine tingled at the idea.

"Maybe..." he agreed solemnly. "Or...maybe we're just being paranoid."

"Now," Dark said, "I'm tired, and it would really help if you'd move over to your own bed, ok!"

Shadow grunted, slipped out of Dark's bed and retreated back to his own, facing the opposite direction and pulling the covers up over his head. Dark glanced at him a moment before laying back down himself.

"Grumpy... It's those Bum-Ferrets of yours acting up again, huh?" Shadow spat.

Dark blushed crimson but said nothing. Instead, he focused on trying to get back to sleep, as did Shadow after a moment.

Though, what was the point of attempting to drift off to sleep again? No matter what, it was sure to be a restless night full of strange dreams once again. And plus those Bum-Ferrets WERE acting up again.

* * *

"Dammit, dammit, dammit... I hate horses. They're so stupid, and they never listen. We should have ridden llamas instead... Or better yet, we should have never come here in the first place! ...Maybe I was best off not knowing I had a sister and a father," Tetra said to herself as she rode along aimlessly.

Tetra had somehow managed to find herself back in the Great Forest, but this time, the southern tip of it. She had spotted no life -- but maybe that was a good thing.

The raindrops fell through the leaves of the towering trees above, splattering onto Tetra's blonde hair in sync. She was sick of the rain, she was sick of Oceana, she was sick of the seemingly hopeless quest at hand, and she was sick of all the damn horses. Pity hers didn't share the same fate as Link's first horse, she thought. But the biggest weight of despair on Tetra was how much she missed Link and Bambi.

Tetra never thought she would fall in love with Link. He was obnoxious -- actually, he still was. But maybe that's what she loved about him.

_And besides_,she thought, _no one else would take me, that's for sure._

Then there was Bambi. Of course, Tetra had gotten the wrong impression of Bambi at first: a sick-minded lesbian rapist that had a fondness for sitting in dark corners and talking to herself.

But at the end of that quest, Tetra found out that the so-called villainess was nothing more than a prisoner of her own mind while the evil sorcerer Vaati did what he pleased in her body. Tetra remembered how she freed Bambi, and in return gained not only a skilled ally but the only female friend she had since her mother died. At last, there was someone to talk to about girl stuff who wasn't a gay male and wasn't Link. Whenever Tetra had tried to talk about "girl stuff" with Link, he would get frightened and ask if she was pregnant.

But then Bambi was gone again, sacrificed in a way, and for the soul purpose of protecting Tetra. And admittedly, Tetra felt genuinely guilty. She was a traitor to her own best friend.

Ah, yes, it seemed as though everyone close to Tetra was going away... But she didn't particularly care about _all_ of them.

Tetra felt a little bit guilty for not missing Pike more. But she hadn't grown attached to her. Sisters as they may be, Tetra didn't even know she had a sister until recently, and then she was rushed into this whole ordeal.

Tetra didn't miss Aryll -- skip the explanation for obvious reasons.

But then there was Arnav. It had crushed the young pirate to get her hopes up about having a father, only to find that said father despised her and cursed her very existence.

"Dammit, my life fucking sucks. I'm all alone with who knows how many villains putting a price on my head. Fuck," Tetra said out loud, squeezing the reins.

But then she nearly shit her pants when a voice uncomfortably close called out to her...

"Excuse me, miss. Please...stop the horse."

Tetra stopped.

"Yo, I wasn't riding too fast! I don't need no fucking ticket!" she snapped, looking around for the speaker. Then she saw who: a cloaked woman holding a bundle.

"No, no, uh...I'm not fining you anything. It's just that...well...I left my home because of this terrible fate that has befallen this land. It is just my baby and I, and we are off to my mother's house. But...it is so far. It's to the north up near Oceana's town and kingdom. If it's not too much trouble, will you give me a ride?" A pair of green eyes glinted in a strange way in the shadows of the cloak's hood that hid most of the woman's face. She hugged her child closer to her.

_Strange...that's an awfully quiet baby. And this lady's a freak..._ Tetra thought uneasily.

"It isn't too much out of your way, is it?" the lady asked again when Tetra did not speak.

Tetra hesitated. It really wasn't out of the way if she didn't have any particular destination. But on the other hand, the northern end of Oceana was probably very dangerous, and this lady made matters even weirder. But then again, it was something to do, helping the lady.

"Er...it's not too out of the way I guess. Get on the horse then..."

The young woman, holding the bundle carefully, mounted slowly behind Tetra.

"I'll give you more directions when we get further north. And thank you, young lady," she said.

"Yeah, yeah, sure thing," Tetra grumbled, changing her direction to north.

Tetra and her strange new companions rode on in silence for a while. The ride seemed to be a long time, long enough for the rain to stop and an odd mist to rise.

"There's a lot of fog. It's hard to see," Tetra commented, half out of annoyance over having to ship some chick somewhere, half out of desperation to break the heavy silence.

"Mm, don't worry. I know the way..." said the woman, her eyes flashing again. Her tone of voice was strange, causing Tetra to shudder. Even the steed seemed uneasy.

They finally reached the end of the forest and broke out to meet the northern plain of Oceana. The fog was even worse here out in the open.

"I'd really rather not go any further. We should stop here..." Tetra said slowly.

"Nonsense. Keep going!" the woman said so shrilly that Tetra jumped.

"What's your problem?" the pirate snapped. "It's some crazy fog out there! And you're creepy enough as it is!"

"Oh, shut up and move!"

"What!"

"If you don't have the guts to ride in a little fog then I'll steer the horse! Hold the baby," the woman growled, shoving the bundle at Tetra. The two females switched spots. The cloaked woman lashed the reins, kicked the horse, and rode on blindly, Tetra clinging on for dear life while trying to hold the baby at the same time.

"HEY, SLOW DOWN!" Tetra yelled.

The young woman grunted and slowed the horse to a walk.

"Fine," she sniffed. "I'll slow...for now."

The silence picked up where it had left off. Tetra thought she heard a groan somewhere to her left...an inhuman, ghastly groan, but still quite soft in audibility.

"Did you hear something?" Tetra asked.

"Not a thing," said the woman plainly in reply.

Tetra sighed and shrugged. Maybe she was hearing things.

"...Your baby's really quiet..." she commented.

The woman glanced back at Tetra slowly through her green eyes.

"Yes...he's a good baby," she said after a while, turning to face forward again.

It was such an odd baby. A little TOO odd... Tetra was getting the impression that there was something wrong with it. After all, it was such a light-weight child, even if it were a newborn. Or maybe it just inherited weirdness from its mother or something.

Another moan sounded from somewhere off in the distance, but Tetra ignored it. She focused her attention on the baby. Curiously, she parted the flap of blanket covering its face...and froze.

There was no baby. There was just a white face with two blank, staring black eye sockets... No, not the face of a child -- the face of a skull, a skull attached to a complete skeleton. These were the remains of a baby.

Tetra's scream was caught in her throat. Shocked and chilled more than she ever had been, she began to shake, her blue eyes wide. At last, her horror erupted: she screamed loudly and threw the bones and the blanket away. The horse reared up in surprise.

"THAT'S NOT A BABY, YOU FREAK! W-WHO ARE YOU?" Tetra asked. Her voice had almost been lost in her throat again.

The woman stopped the horse.

"WHO THE FUCK ARE YOU?" Tetra cried again.

"Hmm. I was hoping you wouldn't find out so quickly..."

The young woman threw off her cloak and spun in the saddle to face Tetra, grinning maniacly.

She was no more than 16 years old with dark tan skin, long, flowing red hair and those green eyes that showed a door to her wicked soul. She was garbed in the clothing of a Gerudo.

"I am Ciara, loyal servant of Majora. And you, dear princess, are being kidnapped."

"Uh, excuse me? Did you just tell me that you're kidnapping me?"

"Hahaha, yes!"

"Thanks for letting me know!" Tetra said quickly, frantically jumping off the horse and dashing back in the direction they had come.

"HEY! COME BACK HERE!" Ciara screamed. She tried to get the horse to pursue her, but it did not budge, leaving the young noble with no choice but to get off the horse and run after Tetra herself. But then she fell flat on her face.

"IF I DON'T CATCH YOU THE UNDEAD WILL!" she cried shrilly after Tetra.

Tetra caught the words that issued a chill up and down her spine. The undead? A spark lit in her brain...that moaning she heard. That inhuman, ghastly, heinous moaning and groaning... Tetra quickened her pace. What the hell was the world coming to?

* * *

Tetra had run a good distance from the chilling scene. She was back in the forest, close to a river that cut through it. Her energy spent, the young pirate leaned against a tree, gasping for breath and clutching a stitch in her side.

_Lord knows if I'm safe anywhere now! Hot damn, I'm in trouble, _Tetra thought, closing her eyes.

Trying to calm herself enough to think up a good plan, Tetra shut off all the feelings of panic and just focused on the sound of the nearby river. It did work in calming her...at least until she felt something on her leg.

Tetra's eyes popped open, and she screamed in horror to see a rotted hand poking up from the earth to wrap itself around her ankle. Panicked once more, Tetra frantically kicked at it and kicked at it until it released its grip on her. When it had, the pirate stumbled away, disgusted, and became even more so when a complete zombie followed its hand out of the ground. Her heart nearly beating out of her chest, Tetra watched as even more zombies pulled themselves out of the earth...

"F-fuck... That Ciara girl was right...!"

Tetra began to back away as the heinous ghouls lumbered closer and closer to her... And then a large roar pierced the air. Tetra snapped her head to the direction of the noise, and let out a wail as a large tiger leaped out of the trees and nearly landed on her.

"WHAT THE FUCK'S A TIGER DOING HERE!"

The tiger eyed her with green eyes, and then slowly morphed into Ciara, grinning insanely.

"Oh, did I scare you?"

Images of the dreams Tetra had had before coming to Oceana flashed in her mind. The girl turning into a tiger... This was that girl!

"You...you turned into a...a tiger...?"

"Yes." Ciara stepped closer. "It is a little gift Majora gave to all of his faithful followers such as myself. It comes in handy..."

The gerudo grabbed Tetra's upper arms, holding onto her tightly as the undead crept closer. But hot damn, they were so fucking slow without muscle tendons and crap.

"I was in that tiger form when I kidnapped your best friend Bambi... Heh...I nearly mangled her arm!"

Tetra glared furiously at Ciara.

"YOU CRAZY BITCH! LET ME GO!" she screamed.

"Oh, no, I'm not letting go..." Ciara whispered, her eyes flashing. "I'm not letting go of you until your safely in the hands of my leader..."

"I SAID LET GO!" Tetra yelled. Lord, she didn't know if she had ever yelled so loud.

But that wasn't the part that surprised Ciara most. Oh, no, that part came when Tetra dug her nails into Ciara's arm. A blue light surrounded the young Hyrulean, and that light spread to her fingers and jolted through Ciara's body like an electric shock. The teenage villainess cried out in pain and released Tetra.

Panic and surprise at what she had just done blinded Tetra. She dashed off in the direction of the river as more zombies popped up around her, adding to her wild fear. But when Tetra finally saw the raging body of water before her, it was too late -- she fell in, screaming at the top of her lungs.

Ciara watched as her prey slipped into the wild water, having recovered from the magic attack.

"NO!" Ciara dashed to the river's edge, and could only watch as Tetra was swept away wailing.

"DAMMIT!" shouted Ciara to the skies.

All the zombies stopped and stared at Ciara with their blank eyesockets. Fuming, Ciara rounded on them.

"Whatchoo lookin' at, foo's? Get back in the fucking ground, you bags of useless, rotting flesh!"

The zombies shrugged their shoulders. Actually, a few zombies' arms fell off in the process. But regardless, they all made it back into the ground and out of Ciara's sight.

"What in the hell is going on!" loudly questioned a new voice. Ciara turned to see Agahnim running through the trees toward her.

He stopped before Ciara, huffing and puffing from the run.

"Ciara? What are you doing here? I saw the undead. What were you using them for?" he demanded.

"I was so close to capturing Tetra! But...she..." Ciara swallowed. It was exactly part of the plan for Tetra to fall into the river and most likely drown.

"Capture Tetra? She was here? And more importantly, what are you doing in Eastern Territory? This place belongs to Vaati and I, you know; Vaati and I alone! You and Ganondorf are responsible for the SOUTHERN TERRITORY, remember! All tasks that take place in the East are MY responsibility!" preached Agahnim.

"YOUR responsibility? This is a team effort, you know! And what about Vaati?" Ciara retorted for the sheer purpose of venting her frustration.

"Vaati has his smart periods and his dumb periods. His smart period was when he tried to take over Hyrule while in Bambi's body and was nearly successful. But now he is in his dumb period, meaning he is mentally incapable of doing things such as reading Go, Dog, Go! by Dr. Seus.

But that matters not, Ciara! Now why are you so reluctant to tell me what happened to Tetra!"

Ever reluctant, Ciara slowly told Agahnim her tale of failure.

"You idiotic bitch! Majora is going to KILL you!"

Ciara glared heatedly at Agahnim.

"He'll go easy on me, I'm sure! After all, it was I who turned him into the man he is! Me and my spell book! Without me, he would never have gotten the chance to even ATTEMPT his plan!"

"Tch...you don't matter much to him. He'll kill you anyway, girl. In fact, you are SO gonna be dead that you're practically the living dead. Like that guy," said Agahnim, pointing at a zombie that was poking its head out of the ground, eavesdropping.

"HEY! Get back in the ground, bone-sack! What did I tell you and those other assholes about eavesdropping? HUH!" barked Ciara, staring down the zombie. It sadly retreated back below the earth.

Agahnim chuckled, shook his head, and started off.

"You're pathetic, Ciara. I should get on your ass about being in my part of Oceana with a stupid purpose, but I won't. You probably have enough on your mind what with how Majora's gonna kill you and all...heh."

Frightened and frustrated, Ciara ground her teeth, clenched her fists, and watched him leave.

* * *

"Hello? Uh...Majora?" Vaati called. His voice bounced back to him off the darkened walls of the now-eerie Oceana Castle.

There had been butterflies in Vaati's stomach all during his trip to the Dark Mirror to teleport to Majora's base. Majora had said that he had wanted to see Vaati, and judging by his tone, it did not seem much like business...

"YO! MAJORA!"

Majora stepped out behind Vaati from a door in the corridor, rubbing his eyes as though he had just woken up.

"Fuckin' dammit, what the fu -- Vaati? Oh...you're finally here..." He smiled. Vaati's already uneasy stomach did flipflops at the way he looked at him as though he were looking at him naked or something.

"Uh...yes sir, I'm here now..." said Vaati quietly, shifting his weight from one foot to another, looking all over the room but anywhere but the man who stood before him.

"Oh, come now...don't call me 'sir'." Majora stepped closer.

"Ok then..."

A moment of awkward silence ensued.

"Soooo...uh...what is it you wanted?" Vaati asked.

Majora grabbed Vaati's hand.

"Let me be blunt." He licked his lips and looked Vaati up and down. "It's you I want, if you know what I mean..."

"Woah, dude, you want me?"

"Mmm...yes, Vaati."

"By 'want me', do you mean you want to have sex with me?"

"Yes."

"The type of sex that involves us putting our penises up eachother's asses!"

Majora raised his eyebrows.

"Well...yes, that's sort of what I had in mind."

But then he narrowed his eyes.

"But why all the questions? Are you saying that you don't want to fuck me?"

"No, no, it's not that! I mean, of course you want to fuck me, who doesen't (no disrespect mean by that, sir)? It's been a sort of dream of mine to have sex with you or something of that nature," Vaati explained.

"Really?"

"Yeah. But...why me?"

"You're better looking than the others... I think you're hot, Vaati," Majora admitted, grinning.

"Sweet. You're pretty hot too. I didn't know you were gay though."

"Well, I'm bisexual."

"I don't know what the hell I am, but hey, I like having things up my ass! Let's go do it," said Vaati.

"Ok! Where do you want to do it?"

Vaati thought for a moment.

"Hmm...the floor is too dusty...the dining room table is too splintery... Let's be classic and do it in the bed, shall we?"

"Great. Let's do it in the king's bed, it's the biggest."

Majora twirled his finger around a strand of Vaati's long, silvery hair and tugged him along to the king's bedroom.

Upon entering the king's quarters, Majora and Vaati fell onto the bed. Sensually but eagerly they undressed.

Majora perched on his knees, stroked Vaati's cheek, down his neck, shoulder, arm, and then stopped at his thigh. He bent down and started kissing Vaati from the navel up. Vaati moaned and tilted his head back when Majora's lips came to his neck.

Vaati entwined his fingers in Majora's long, black hair, then bent forward and started kissing his face. He felt himself beginning to erect.

Majora grabbed Vaati's face and lay back, pulling the other man on top of him. He rubbed his legs up and down Vaati's rear and the backs of his legs, making him moan. But then a noise sounded below...a sound like a door opening.

"Did you hear something...?" Vaati muttered into Majora's neck.

"Yeah, but who cares..." Majora groaned, enjoying the pleasuring chills that spawned from the feeling of Vaati's tongue and lips on his neck.

Both men were getting pretty hard by that time. Vaati slid off of Majora, who mumbled something in protest. Vaati hushed him, flipped him over onto his stomach and entered him roughly from the back. Ultimately pleasured for the moment, Majora let out a small wail. Vaati brushed his long black hair out of the way and proceeded to suck his neck. Majora let out a gasp and arched his bach, harder than ever. Vaati pumped him, and both issued screams and moans and sweat like the horny-yaoi-sluts they are. In fact, they were so into the horny-yaoi-slut gig that they did not notice that more noise was coming from downstairs...

* * *

Dark moved quickly and quietly over the floor of Oceana Castle. He knew he shouldn't be there, but doubted that he would be noticed. Majora was occupied, judging by the screaming and creaking of bed springs coming from above. Having spoken to Agahnim quite recently, Dark was also aware that Vaati was absent from his territory. All that needed to be done was to put two and two together, and wham -- it all equaled Majora/Vaati intercourse! Not that Dark and the others hadn't seen it coming, anyway.

Dark Link paced swiftly up a flight of carpeted stairs. Once at the top, his red eyes scanned the corridors and all the doors. He made a right down another corridor and pushed open the nearest door on the left: his destination.

Dark now found himself in a bedroom. It was dark, but still clean. The bed was made and everything was still intact. It wasn't hard to spot what he was looking for, which happened to be a traveling bag labeled "Bambi". It was sitting on a small table near a window in front of him. Dark went over to retrieve it when something caught his eye...a worn old piece of paper with a poem written on it. A sense of eerie deja vu swept over Dark as he read the words:

_To smite the moonlight's lover_

_Thou must thwart those who are unpure_

_He who drains the night's day_

_The children of darkness will come forth_

_To lend aid to those true_

_To lay hand on the six Tools of the Gods_

_To help small girls find their way_

_Look for their red blood amongst the black_

_Seven heinous souls_

_One who reigns_

_Four who are weak-minded_

_And two who come forth to do what the gods see right_

_Spare the two_

_And leave all else to die_

_Unlock the door for he_

_Who is one, become four_

_Using time's key, save a boy and his lover_

_Then hurry to the church as the sky rains blood_

_Or else all will be gone for good_

Dark read it over and over. At last, he dropped it with a shudder.

_That poem...that was the one in my dream! Maybe it was the one in Shadow's, too! Holy shit! _he thought, shaking his head in disbelief.

Dark stood motionless for a while, his thoughts racing. There was no mistaking it now -- that dream was indeed some sort of sign.

Cautiously, he began to read it again, only this time there was a part that caught his eye:

_The children of darkness will come forth_

_To lend aid to those true_

_To lay hand on the six Tools of the Gods_

_To help small girls find their way_

_Look for their red blood amongst the black_

_Seven heinous souls_

_One who reigns_

_Four who are weak-minded_

_And two who come forth to do what the gods see right_

_Spare the two_

_And leave all else to die_

He wasn't quite sure what it was about the part that intrigued him, but it did. Those words replayed themselves over and over again in his mind.

Dark then heard a loud scream of ecstasy sound from a few corridors away. It meant no danger, but regardless, it made him jump. Hastily pocketing the poem and snatching up Bambi's bag, Dark hurried out of the room, down the stairs, and to the entry hall of the castle where he stepped into the large, swirling, smoking, liquid-like mass on the floor that would transport him back to the Dark Mirror.

A feeling like a strong gust of wind and cold water trickling around him overcame Dark after entering the portal before he found himself stumbling out of the mirror. Still deep in thought, Dark hurried in a western direction. At last, he reached the Old Manor.

Shadow eyed Dark curiously from his spot on a couch near the door as his brother entered. He was surrounded by bags of potato chips and was wolfing them down, as one is supposed to do with potato chips...

"Dark, where were you? You were gone a while," he said through a mouthful.

Dark did not answer. He just stared back at Shadow as he stuffed himself.

"And you wonder why you're fat, eating like that," Dark Link commented.

Shadow swallowed, frowned, and looked down at his stomach.

"You really think I'm fat?"

"Well, yeah. But nevermind that..."

Dark hesitated a moment before speaking again.

"Uh...where's Bambi?"

"Why do you want to know?"

"Cut the crap man, where's Bambi?"

"Chill OUT, Dark! Jeez...what's your problem? You're all stormin' in here and calling me fat --" Shadow wolfed down another handful of potato chips -- "And then you demand to know where that slave girl is. Is something wrong?"

"No -- well...I'll talk to you about it later, Shadow. Where's Bambi?" Dark asked again with a sigh.

Shadow still looked confused.

"Well, I think she's out on the top balcony or something..." he answered slowly at last.

Dark left the room, heading for the top balcony while thanking Shadow over his shoulder.

* * *

Bambi was just where Shadow had said -- out on the top balcony, looking over the moon-bathed treetops. Dark came up behind her quietly, her traveling bag in his hands.

"Ahem...excuse me..." he said quietly. Bambi turned to look at him.

"Oh...there you are... I was wondering where you were." She smiled kindly.

There was a moment of silence before Dark took a nervous breath, shifted, looked around and then back at Bambi again. He held out the bag.

"I went and got your things for you..."

Bambi took the bag gently, looking down.

"Thank you," she softly said.

Dark looked her straight in the face.

"Listen...I guess I was a dick the other day, and I'm sor --"

"No...I'm sorry. That was all my fault, Dark. I didn't have any right to accuse you of any of the things I accused you of..." said Bambi, frowning.

"No...all those things were true. I shouldn't have disrespected you like that," Dark admitted.

"Please, don't apologize! You've treated me far nicer than the others. I should have thanked you from the very beginning. I was letting my unhappiness cloud my better judgement, and I took that unhappiness out on you. That was wrong." Bambi smiled nervously, apologetically.

Dark felt his face grow hot under her gaze. Adding to his initial flustered state of being was the way the moonlight fell on her.

_Holy shit, she's pretty. And her boobs are -- damn..._ he thought.

Bambi noticed his staring. She chuckled nervously and slowly turned back to look out at the scenery again. Dark hesitated, but then he joined her, and they looked on in silence.

"Can I ask you something?" Bambi asked.

"Umm...sure...er...what is it?"

"Do you really like working for Majora? I mean, he doesen't treat you and your brother very well... I don't mean to sound as though I were spying, but I saw him hit the two of you a couple of times... He really shouldn't abuse you and your brother just because you're younger than the others."

Dark thought over her question, searching for the best answer.

"Well, he brought me back to life. I owe it to him to work for him. I suppose some of the things he does to Shadow and I are unfair, but that's how life is," he answered, trying to make his words seem as guarded as possible. After all, they were on opposite sides of the whole good vs. evil bit.

Bambi twirled her finger around one of her pale blonde curls nervously.

"But I mean, do you like doing it? It sounds like you're just doing it out of a feeling of debt... Does he stand for the things you value?" she inquired hesitantly.

The feeling of uneasiness in the pit of Dark's stomach grew.

"Why do you want to know?" he asked quickly.

"Oh, I'm sorry for asking..." Bambi apologized, looking away. "You just didn't seem like the type of person that belongs in a place like this. I was wondering if maybe you did or didn't... But I'm being too nosy, aren't I? I apologize..."

Dark sighed heavily. They were both picking around nervously in the conversation, neither he nor Bambi wanting another argument.

"Don't be sorry," he said. "Honestly, I don't know how I really feel about working for Majora. And I don't really have any values or morals, so the things he stands for don't really reach me in certain ways, I guess..."

"You don't have morals or values? None at all?" Bambi asked with a frown.

"I...I guess not," Dark admitted, blushing.

"Everyone does. Personally, I value friendship, family, and doing what's right." Bambi smiled. To Dark, it suddenly felt as if the cool night air had been exchanged for a desert temperature. He took a deep breath to calm himself.

_Damn hormones. Fucking puberty_, he thought bitterly.

"Well...can I ask you something?" he said. The words had just sort of tumbled out, and he wasn't sure he should have asked.

"Sure, ask me anything," Bambi replied.

"Well...I know Majora made you admit to being a decoy for the real Zelda... But don't you feel betrayed by your friends?"

Bambi looked out ahead at the moon and starts, a thoughtful, troubled look on her face.

"Well...it had to be done, but I can't say that I'm not hurt by it," she finally said after much consideration.

"I would be..." Dark said softly.

The two gazed at eachother for a moment, then quickly looked away again. But it wasn't long before they started talking. Both were surprised and a little unnerved by how much about themselves they revealed to eachother, seeing as they were on opposite sides of the ordeal with Oceana, but it didn't seem wrong. Dark and Bambi held a conversation that lasted for an hour, maybe more.

"Wow...we've been out here for a while," Dark said at last.

"Yeah. This is nice though. You're...a really good guy, you know. You really don't belong with Majora and the others. But that's just my opinion," said Bambi. She smiled at Dark again.

"Well, I uh...I, um...better go back in and make sure Shadow's not still eating those potato chips...don't want him to explode or whatever. It was nice talking to you... Er...good night..." Dark said, grinning awkwardly, his cheeks bright pink as he started to leave.

"Good night..." Bambi called softly after him.

* * *

When Dark had left, Bambi sighed and leaned against the railing of the balcony.

_Wow..._ she thought. _There's just something about him... He may be Dark Link, but he's nothing like Link, and he certainly isn't dark. So easy to talk to, too..._

She thought about the conversation they had. She and Dark had talked about their pasts, almost everything... Their previous argument had been forgotten.

But then Bambi began to stop thinking about the conversation. Her thoughts of it were replaced by thoughts of Dark alone... And she felt her cheeks flush and her heart begin to thump.

* * *

"Hey...! Wake up! Come on, miss, wake up...!" cried a male voice.

Tetra moaned and rolled over. That voice...it had started out to faint and far away sounding, but it was growing closer, accompanied by a gentle tapping on her arm.

"Go away, Link...I ain't fuckin' you tonight. Too...tired..." Tetra muttered.

"What? Who's Link?" asked the voice.

"Huh...uh...uh...?" Tetra opened her eyes slowly and looked around.

She was on what seemed to be a sandy bank. It was apparent that wherever she was was near a beach, but wasn't actually one. The first blue sky and sunshine she had seen for so long gleamed overhead, warming her. She was no longer by a river, but instead, a quaint stream.

But then Tetra caught sight of the boy that had been touching her arm and calling out to her. Her eyes widened. He was her height, and judging by his voice and body, was a male her age. But that was about the only normal thing about him. He had blue, scaly skin, black eyes, and fish-like qualities such as fins and a fish tail coming from the back of his head.

"HOLY SHIT, IT'S DOLPHIN BOY!" she screamed in horror, leaping to her feet and stumbling backward. However, an aching pain in her head caused her to fall back. The fish boy gasped and ran to her, but hesitated when he was rather close. He blushed slightly.

"Miss, are you ok?"

Wincing from the pain, Tetra squinted up at him.

"Wha...what are you...?" she breathed.

The fish boy looked confused.

"Huh? But aren't you an Oceanan? An Oceanan would know what I am..." he said, frowning.

"I'm not an Oceanan..."

"Oh, well...I'm a zora. I guess if you've never seen a zora before, I must look pretty weird. But we are what we look: aquatic people. I don't bite or anything, don't worry." He smiled weakly, then held out a web-fingered hand for Tetra to take. Hesitantly, she accepted his offer of help. The zora boy blushed when her hand grasped his.

"I'll take you to Zora's Domain. We can get you proper medical attention there. It's this way," he said, leading Tetra forward. The whole time, he seemed genuinely nervous.

"I found you on the bank of the stream. Did you fall into the river that's a way up from here?" the zora asked.

Tetra rubbed her aching head. It took her a moment to remember what had happened previously, but slowly the memory returned.

"Yeah...I think I did..." she said.

"You're lucky to have lived...that river water is something rapid. Oh, by the way...my name is Dalit. I'm the son of the Zora king and queen's advisor."

"My name is Tetra. Er...nice to meet you dolphin b -- I mean...Dalit."

Dalit looked at her.

"Tetra...that's a pretty name." But his gaze did not linger long, for he looked quickly away in embarassment.

At last, they reached the Zora's Domain. The entry way was a waterfall that ceased its movement when Dalit approached. He and Tetra crossed into the domain. It really was a beautiful place, Tetra thought. Covered in clear blue water that gave the white stone walls and floors a blue glow... There were zoras all over, talking happily and laughing. Many stopped to look at Tetra and Dalit.

Tetra was surprised to see how peaceful the place was. Everyone was unharmed in Zora's Domain, and the sun still shone just outside its walls. But then the thought unnerved her... What if this place was like Ipoli, where everything seemed normal while in actuality everyone was posessed? Tetra realized she couldn't trust anyone here.

_Oh, Link...Bambi...I wish you guys were here..._ she thought mournfully. What ever had become of them? Tetra had to wonder. Tetra was so deep in her self-pity that she didn't notice that she and Dalit had entered what must have been the Zora's throne room.

Three zoras looked up when they entered. Two, an elegant male and female, were seated on thrones made of white stone at the back of the room. Between them sat what appeared to be an ornate stone bowl containing three round, see-through eggs with blue spots in the middle. Tetra assumed that the male and female zora were the king and queen. They wore elegant, royal attire, while the other zoras were butt-ass-naked. The third zora was a tall, slender male standing to the left of the king's throne.

"Tetra, this is King Aquarius and Queen Kendra," said Dalit, nodding and bowing to the king and queen. They nodded at Dalit, but gazed at Tetra suspiciously. She hastily bowed.

"And this is my father and the king and queen's noble advisor, Fisher." Dalit gestured to the tall zora standing by the king.

"Dalit, what is the meaning of this?" demanded King Aquarius.

"Your Highness, I found this girl washed up on the side of the stream. She fell into the river. I am certain she is of no danger...she is injured," explained Dalit, bowing his head respectfully.

"Who is to say she is not a part of Majora's army?" Queen Kendra inquired sharply.

"You're against him too?" Tetra asked. Her heart lifted -- maybe these people were normal (not counting the fact that they were fish people) after all!

"Yes, we are very much against him! He is the one who put that monster in our lake!" boomed Fisher.

"What monster?" Tetra looked from zora to zora as their expressions darkened.

"A few weeks ago, one of Majora's followers came here. He was a man by the name of Agahnim, and he demanded that we give in to Majora. But we refused, and managed to ward him off with our powerful zora magic. But he cast a spell on our main water source, causing the ressurection of an ancient fish monster named Gyorg. Now no one is safe at that lake, and it is oh-so important..." Kendra told Tetra sadly.

"That's right," added Aquarius. He gestured to the three eggs in the bowl next to him. "These eggs are mine and Kendra's, and when they are ready to hatch, we shall have our children." Aquarius shot a loving look at Kendra before continuing. "But on the day they are supposed to hatch, zora eggs are supposed to be placed in that lake. But Gyorg is there, and we cannot... But if we can't, our eggs will die. And this may be our last chance at having children, for we had trouble conceiving..."

Tetra shook the thoughts of Aquarius and Kendra getting busy out of her head. Fish people sex was too weird to think about.

"Well, we all have something in common then," Tetra declared. "We all want Majora dead." And she told the zora nobles all of what had happened, and also told them a little bit about her background as a hero and a princess. High on the respect and interest she was receiving, she also happened to let it slip that she was the daughter of Oceana's King Arnav.

All the zoras gasped.

"So the rumors are true...! Arnav has TWO bastard daughters!" Fisher exclaimed. "It was rumoured that Pike's mother had twins and left with the other baby!"

"Yeah, and -- wait, did you call me a bastard!"

"And you're a hero out to kill Majora! You can surely help us!" Dalit exclaimed, his eyes full of admiration. His cheeks turned pink with blush again.

Kendra clapped her hands together.

"This is excellent! We'll get you some medical attention tonight, and tomorrow we'll show you the lake where the monster lives!" she announced.

Tetra gulped.

"Shit..." she murmured under her breath.


	11. Whispers in the Grass

_**Goodness, I didn't realize that I hadn't updated this in over 40 days! Yikes, I'm so sorry! But I'm pleased to announce that I will shortly be starting my first SERIOUS chapter story.**_

**_Well, I'm sorry for being so slow. But there's been a lot going on lately. I was having major problems with my boyfriend, and in the end, it wound up with him cheating on me and then dumping me. I didn't find out he was cheating until after I got dumped, though... Damn, I'm one of them hopeless romantics, ain't I? All the relationships I get into go awry. Maybe I'm too young to be dating._**

**_In all honesty, I suppose that's not an excuse for this chapter being so late. Blame it on procrastination then, ok?_**

**_Oh yeah, and I've also been doing a collaboration fic with two of my all-time best friends ever! They've been doing most of the planning, but I wrote up the prologue and put it on this website. I don't know what they want me to do for the next chapter yet. You can find the storyon this website under the username "dottedleaf". It's about the Warriors series (they're books), and though I'm not really all that fond of the books, it's still good to be involved in the story._**

**_Oh, and why did I name the Minish in this chapter after terrorists? I do not know._**

**_Please review! Luv you guys._**

* * *

_**Chapter 11 -- Whispers in the Grass**_

Through the damp, rain and mud-soaked grass tramped a group of tiny creatures, so tiny, in fact, that the blades of grass were more like trees towering above their heads. There were four in the group -- at the head was an elder among the creatures, garbed in grass-green robes and holding a wooden cane carved like a bird at the top in his gnarled old hand. He had long white hair and a long white beard, long enough to nearly trail along the ground, but it was straight and well groomed. His face was mostly hidden by all the hair, though he did have two shiny black eyes peering out angrily. Like hamster eyes or something.

Marching behind him side-by-side were two young adult males with rosey cheeks, pointy ears, and green outfits made of grass. Resting on their small heads were red elf hats.

Holding up the rear, walking grudgingly was a young female with red eyes, pale, greyish skin and long, wavy silver hair that fell down to the middle of her back. She was dressed in a white robe.

These, my dear friends, were specimens of the Minish species. They were created by the gods to aid the human and Hylian race, despite the fact that they are only seen by good children. They were once a popular Hyrulian legend hundreds upon hundreds of years ago, but as time went, so did their memory. They were completely unheard of after the drowning of Hyrule and the start of the Great Sea, but they lived on...in Oceana AND on islands throughout the Great Sea. And not to mention the fact that they thrived.

Back in the present with our little party of Minish lead by the elder, the group waded through the mud and water with great difficulty. They looked around, crying out the words, "Is anyone there?" on occasion. But always there was no answer. The mud got deeper as the little Minish marched on, and the struggle worsened, especially for the little girl at the back. But at last, they found a rock -- a safe haven. Pulling themselves out of the muck, they climbed on, their clothes now stained.

"That mud nearly snapped my cane in half, dammit!" complained the elder. He turned his head to look at his weary companions.

"HEY! SIT UP STRAIGHT, YOU LOT! BE PROPER!" he ordered, dealing each of the three others a smack with the cane.

"Master Ezlo, please...! This pisses us off just as much as it does you! It's bad enough without you beating us. We're trying our best to find the flood survivors, you know!" said one of the young adult males in a fatigued sort of way.

Now, you see, Minish lived all over Oceana. Often in places that the Oceanans wouldn't think to look. They were much like humans, having government, religion, and towns. The town where Ezlo and his crew had come from had suffered the damage of a terrible flood resulting from the extreme amount of rain over the past few months. Many Minish had been washed away with the flood, which had taken place a few days ago, and search groups were assigned to the task of going out in hopes of discovering survivors. A few had been found alive and were given medical attention. But most of the finds, however, were corpses.

Back in the present time, Ezlo turned to glare at the Minish man who had spoken out against him.

"Silence, Osama! I'll beat you however many frickin' times I want!" snapped Ezlo, beating him with the cane again.

"Master Ezlo, please, stop!" begged the other young male.

"Go fuck yourself, Saddam!" snapped Ezlo, hitting the other with the cane too.

So, finally, Osama and Saddam shut up and let Ezlo complain all he wanted. And complain Ezlo did, for a time. The foursome sat in silence after that, until Ezlo glanced at his totally awesome electric watch and groaned.

"We're behind schedule! We need to go at least another mile and then return home! And with the length of time you all have been just sitting here, we should have already been on our way home!" announced Ezlo with scorn.

"But it's not entirely our fault, Master Ezlo! Y-you were sitting around too..." murmured Osama timidly.

"WHAT WAS THAT?"

"Nothing...!" Osama shrank down in fear.

"Good." Ezlo straightened himself up and looked down upon the little girl Minish, who had not said a single word.

"Natacien!" he barked. She quickly averted her red eyes to her elder.

"Natacien, as my apprentice, I choose you to lead the group for the final mile of our search. That way, if we run into anything that eats Minish, it'll eat you first while the rest of us can get away."

Natacien stood up, sneered, and gave a mock-curtsey to Ezlo.

"Yes, Your Highness," said she with sarcasm.

Ezlo stiffened. Natacien, his apprentice...she was so much like his last apprentice, Vaati, in both appearance and behavior. In fact, she was an incredibly close relative of his last apprentice, which was why Ezlo took her under his wing. In his own way, it was a sign of making up to himself for what Vaati had done. Vaati had done the unthinkable... And he was still alive that very day, and was no longer a Minish, thanks to something that was partially Ezlo's fault. Natacien did not know of her blood relations with the other apprentice. She didn't even know he existed, and Ezlo planned to keep it that way for fear that she would be inspired by the infamous deeds of the other.

"Do not mouth off to me, Natacien! Now get down from this rock, and we shall follow you. AND STAND UP STRAIGHTER! LIFT YOUR CHIN HIGH, GIRL!" ordered Ezlo.

Smugly, Natacien climbed off the rock and took up their path from earlier, leading the group. Ezlo, Osama, and Saddam weren't far behind.

* * *

"Wake up, Link, my love! Please, tell me that you are alive!" 

Link groaned and rolled over away from the voice, his eyelids twitching slightly with the effort to stay sleeping.

"He's alive! He really is!" exclaimed a second voice.

These voices...they were familiar. And they had seemed to be just another dream up until, well...recently. Link had lost track of time.

"WAKE UP!" yelled a third, and Link felt a hard kick on his wounded stomach. He let out a long groan of agony and forced his eyes open to look at the sources of the noise.

Towering above Link's injured form were, to his disbelief, the pirates! Though Tetra was not amongst them. There was also another face, which Link focused his blurred vision on... Who was this other guy, he wondered? He seemed familiar. But then it hit him -- the man accompanying the five pirates was none other than King Arnav, ruler of Oceana and father of his beloved Tetra and Princess Pike. He was thinner, tired, and harassed-looking, but was Arnav all the same.

"G-guys...?" uttered Link.

"He spoke words!" cried Senza.

"Link, we thought you were dead!" breathed Nudge.

"I would have preferred it that way..." murmured Mako.

Link, his head spinning, tried to sit up, but failed. He had been living near the river for over three days after Shadow and Dark had attacked him. Too badly wounded to travel very far, and too hungry to do much of anything, Link crashed at a spot near the river to waste away, completely stranded. He had only a few belongings kept with him, but no food, and hardly any decent medical supplies. He had felt hopeless, certain that he was going to die.

"Link!" Niko squeaked, kneeling beside him quickly.

"OH MY GODDESSES! YOU'RE HURT!" Gonzo exclaimed dramatically, kneeling down on Link's other side and hugging him around the waist tightly. Link cried out in pain again.

"OW...! YOU...YOU PERVERT! AGH..."

Gonzo released Link.

Arnav, for some reason, was quivering with what seemed to be anticipation. He was about to attack Link with many questions, but Senza stopped him.

"What happened, Link?" he asked.

"I was attacked by Dark Link and this other clone of me, a fat one that Dark said was his twin, Shadow Link... It's, uh...a long story, but it ends with me having pretty much nothing and wasting away by this here river."

"Well, we'd better take you back to our hideout with us and get you taken care of. Can you stand?" Nudge asked.

Link thought about how to answer that question. Yes, he could stand. But hell, it would be way easier to be carried.

Pulling on an expression of exaggerated pain, Link rubbed his stomach wound and whimpered.

"No...I...I don't think I can walk..." he lied.

"He's lying, you assholes! That is so FAKE!" Mako spat. Judging by his expression, Arnav seemed to be thinking the same thing.

But the other pirates paid no regard to the protest. Senza gently picked up Link, and the pirates and the king were off to wherever their hideout lie.

"You are SO overreacting..." Mako hissed to Link.

The men's hideout was, as Link discovered, an underground cave that lead to under the river, secured from leaks by thick stone walls. There was junk and cargo strewn about casually and carelessly, not to mention crap on the walls.

_Oh yeah_, Link thought, _This place has been the home of the pirates... Damn, for gay guys, they sure aren't very neat..._

The pirates had been sleeping on sacks stuffed with leaves. At first Link wondered why they had no beds, but then slowly, ever so slowly (he's a dumbass, remember people?), it occurred to him that if they escaped Majora's wrath, then they probably had to leave quickly and with very little.

"It's not the most comfortable, but it's better than nothing..." sighed Senza, setting Link down on one of the "mattresses".

Link closed his eyes and relaxed. True, they didn't have much good of anything, but he decided it best to take advantage of the kindness he was being offered.

"Oh...I am SO hungry...!" Link groaned in his best drama queen tone, scrunching his face up in an imitation of pain.

"Oh, Link, I'm sorry...we don't have any food with us right now..." admitted Nudge.

Link rolled this factor over in his brain. He was pretty damn hungry, no lie there. But he wasn't in the physical shape to scavenge for anything. Well...maybe he could if he _tried_, but he really couldn't dig up the motivation for such a task. If anyone was getting any food ASAP, then one of the pirates was to do if, because like hell if Link was going to! He had to gain more sympathy to...push them a little, so to speak.

"OH! I THINK I'M DYING! I NEED FOOD...NOW!" Link wailed, pulling up a few fake tears.

"Swabbie, we need to take care of your wounds first!" insisted Niko.

"BUT I MEAN IT, GUYS! SERIOUSLY, MY HUNGER IS KILLING ME...! GAH..."

"You're not dying, you cheap-ass bastard! Cut the sympathy crap!" snapped Mako.

Link grew discouraged. Aparently the overdone injury bit was wearing itself out. Link then thought of what he always thought of in doubt: what would Tetra do in this situation...?

Hmm. What WOULD Tetra do? Order people to do what she wanted, most likely... But Link was no good at that. However, he remembered what Tetra did to gain sympathy and spoils from people other than the crew, occasionally: pretend she was pregnant. Or in labor. That was the solution to Link's situation!

"Fine..." Link sniffed. "If you want to let my baby die, go ahead! In this delicate condition, I can do just about nothing! I...I am completely dependant on the generosity of others in this state..."

"Link, what are you talking about?" Gonzo asked, puzzled.

"I'M TALKIN' 'BOUT MY PREGNANCY!"

"Pregnancy?" The pirates looked around at eachother and Link, shocked and confused. Only Arnav sat in the corner, eyeing Link with a cold calm that seemed to mean he still had something to say.

"Yes. I'm pregnant."

"But...how...!"

"Er..." Link hadn't exactly thought up that part. But then it came to him so suddenly that he was quite surprised by his own burst of intelligence!

"Majora did it," he stated.

"THAT BASTARD RAPED YOU...!" Gonzo sobbed, tears forming in his eyes.

"Yes, he raped me! And now I'm pregnant with his child!"

"That's not possible, Link! You're a boy. How can you get pregnant, eh!" Mako sneered.

"Majora is _maaaaagical_, MA-KO!" replied Link sassily. "He can do what he wants!"

"Did he want to get you pregnant?" Senza asked.

"Maybe..." said Link, rubbing his stomach.

"Oh, you poor thing...! Pregnant and a boy at age twelve! We'll get you food right away!" cried Nudge, jumping up. The others followed suit, except for Mako, who reluctantly lagged behind, and soon the crew was off, leaving Link alone with Arnav.

"That was stupid," Arnav said after a moment.

"No it wasn't! How come you didn't buy it and go with them?" retorted Link.

"Because for one, it was not very convinving to me. And two, there might be bandits outside..." Arnav looked around furtively.

"Um...bandits?"

"Yes, bandits! They are everywhere! Can't you see them?"

"...No, I don't think I have seen a single bandit while I've been in your stupid Oceana."

Arnav glared.

"Fine. Go ahead and not believe, but I warn you, bandits are out there waiting to put you in a sack and kidnap you, then take you out of the sack and take off your clothes, then rape you and then kill you by stabbing you in the neck with a particularly sharp object," he said.

"Um, ok then..."

"BUT LET'S GET TO THE POINT!"

Arnav's sudden, loud words made Link jump.

"What the hell have you done with my darling daughter Pike?"

"What are you talking about, dude! I didn't do anything to her, honest! We got separated!" cried Link. "And besides, aren't you worried about Tetra?"

Arnav went on, "Pike is princess of this land, and you couldn't protect her?"

"I'm not worried about Pike! She acts like she has a fucking stick up her ass all the time! It's Aryll I'm worried about! And Tetra! Tetra, your other daughter, dumbfuck. Don't you care!"

"No, I do NOT care! She is her mother's copy! An outsider that I will not accept as my own! And you, DEAR boy, are practically the reincarnation of that foolish blonde liar, Bo, that accompanied her! It's almost has if history has repeated itself. Surely Bo's blood flows through your veins!"

"Dude, I never even MET Bo! Lazerus said that he was BAMBI'S father, not mine! And you should respect me just as much as any of your people. You should be out there believing I'm pregnant too, you know!"

"HA. Why would I ever have reason to grant any respect to someone such as YOU?"

"I'm the son of your precious, dead maiden, Astasia!" Link bragged.

"Then she was a fool to birth you," replied Arnav coldly.

"Well then...you suck. And you're a bastard."

* * *

"Mmm...I miss Bambi...and big brother...and Tetra..." Aryll whimpered, tramping through the deep mud as she held the lead of the small pony that was her only companion. 

"It's all wet and sticky...and mud is getting into my sandals..."

A gust of cold, heartless wind blew across the field, carrying the sound of the tiniest, oddest soundings shrieks Aryll had ever heard. She stopped and listened.

"Help! Help!" cried the tiny voices.

"Wow! I'm hearing voices!" Aryll said in awe, looking around.

"Voices! Oh, voices! Where are you!"

"Here! Down here!" they squeaked.

"Huh! Where!"

"Look down, bitch!"

Aryll looked down. She saw a leaf.

"Oh my gosh, no way! A talking leaf!" she exclaimed excitedly, bending down in the mud. It didn't matter that it was wet, seeing as she was already covered in mud.

"THIS IS NOT A TALKING LEAF! LOOK CLOSER!" squawked one of the voices.

Aryll squinted as hard as she could and moved her face closer. She saw the sources of those voices now: four tiny creatures with human characteristics, clinging desperately to the leaf and nearly drowning. One was old with long, white hair and a beard to match, garbed in mud-stained green robes. The other two looked identical, with little red hats and clothes made of spring-green leaves. The last one she focused on was the smallest. It had long, silvery hair, red eyes, white robes, and pale, greyish skin...something familiar about that one, in Aryll's mind. What were these things, she wondered? But then the presumed correct answer came to mind -- her brother had told her about these little creatures.

"Oh, my! I'm seeing crabs!" Aryll squealed excitedly, clasping her hands together.

"CRABS! WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT!" snapped the elder.

"Yes, crabs, crab! My brother told me about crabs! He said you are little creatures that live in people's genitals and are spread from unprotected sexual acts!"

"We are not THOSE crabs! THOSE crabs are a sexual transmitted parasitic disease, damn you! We are not any type of crab! We are Minish!" cried one of the red-hatted ones.

"YEAH, AND STOP STARING LIKE SOME IDIOT AND HELP US!" the littlest Minish screamed.

Aryll shrugged.

"Well, if you say so."

Picking up the leaf, Aryll carried the Minish to safety and set them down on a rock nearby. She then laid down on her stomach to stare at them.

"If you are not the crabs my big brother mentioned, then do you still live in genitals?" she asked.

"No, of course not! Well, _most_ of our kind don't, anyway... And how do you even know what genitals are?" questioned the other red-hat.

"I don't. My big brother just talks about them a lot!"

"Well, don't you copy! It is very unpolite for a lady to speak of her genitals, and those of others," sniffed the elder.

"Okey dokey! Anyway, my name is Aryll! How about you guys?"

"I am Ezlo, wise sage of the Minish world," the elder boasted.

"I'm Osama," said one red-hat.

"And I am Saddam," introduced its twin.

"Natacien," the littlest one said stiffly, her face blank.

Aryll beamed.

"You're just like my little doll house people, only weird-looking! I should --"

"NO. YOU WILL DO NOTHING TO US!" Ezlo screamed. Aryll shut up.

Much more calmly, he continued, "We must be going back to our village. And you have our thanks, little girl. But we should not let you go unrewarded."

"I know of your journey," Ezlo went on, "Though my fellows may not. A most important object, one you must seek, lies southeast of here." Ezlo pointed in the direction. "Keep walking that way until you come to a bridge -- No Man's Bridge -- and keep going in the same direction. You should soon reach a valley. It is a dangerous place, home to yet another evil monster, so step lightly and you won't meet trouble. Go straight south once you hit the center of the valley, and once you leave it, you should come upon some ruins. The ruins are highly dangerous, but to them you must journey, and then, and ONLY then, will you find what you need."

Aryll was silent for a moment.

"...Huh?"

"Damn you! You heard me! Now set us down!" snapped Ezlo.

"Okey dokey. Bye crabs!" Aryll said cheerily as she set down the Minish.

"REMEMBER! Southeast, bridge, southeast, valley, south, RUINS!"

And then, the Minish walked away. Aryll watched them leave, then turned to look at her pony.

"Those were some interesting little crabs," she commented. "They were nice though!"

The young girl turned her head to the southeast.

"I don't see much else to do aside from what the old crab said. I guess I'll just take his advice then, won't I?" Aryll mounted the pony and headed southeast.

* * *

"This is hopeless. They are nothing without me! Link and Tetra don't know this land as I do. I best hope they're together, wherever they are... It's not safe if you don't know Oceana, not in the least..." murmured Pike, shaking her head as she leaned against a tall tower -- the Mountain Tower. 

In Oceana lay four sacred towers: Mountain Tower, Valley Tower, Ocean Tower, and Swamp Tower. They were posts for power that protected the entire world, untouchable to humans and even beings like Majora.

Pike knew all of Oceana like the back of her hand. She had been to every single part of it more than once, and had all the maps memorized. The young princess was confident in her ability to not get lost, but had a creeping certainty that Link and Tetra, wherever they were, could not say the same. Pike hoped they were alright. Even Link, asshole or not.

Oceana's princess had traveled far since the three had gotten separated, and had eluded much danger. She had escaped from a tribe of dark people called hafwens. Hafwens...they looked like humans. Beautiful, sexy, enchanting, seductive humans. But, of course, they were definately not human -- they seduced people, and when the sex was over, the victim was a vegetable (not literally), unable to move or talk, lost to their own mind. Like spiders, the hafwens would eat the victim. Hafwens were highly dangerous, as it was hard to tell them apart from humans aside from a feeling of strange attraction to a hafwen. Pike had nearly been lured to bed by some, but had escaped. Angry and vengeful, the tribe of Hafwens had slaughtered the princess' horse, forcing her to flee on foot. Since the incident, Pike had frequently wondered if they were after her, but luckily, her Light Cutlass gave her a good deal of security.

Now Princess Pike was making her way to the Light Shrine, a holy place of prayer and guidance just east of Mountain Tower, and not a long trip at all. Her mission was seeking answers and guidance from the spirits of the shrine. Pike was confident enough that Majora hadn't touched the Light Shrine. Of course, it was too, well...light.

Princess Pike took up her journey again east, and it wasn't too long before she reached the shrine. As she had hoped, it was untouched. The Light Shrine was a small shrine, surrounded by a small pond that glistened with sunlight even on the cloudiest of days. The structure itself was quite small and made of white marble.

Pike entered the shrine, got down on her knees, and set all her weaponry on the floor in front of her. She began to pray more desperately than she ever had before; she prayed for her sister, her father, for Oceana, and everyone who had been harmed in the whole miserable ordeal.

"If ya keep prayin' so fast and hard like that, lil' girl, you'll run outta oxygen," said a female voice.

Pike nearly screamed from shock. Her brown eyes flicked open wide, and she looked around for the voice. The source was scarier than the shock -- standing above the Light Cutlass was a misty figure, shaped vaguely like a woman. She couldn't see the face, and all the colors seemed blended and mixed together.

Heart pounding, Pike made to jump to her feet, but stumbled backward.

"Would you cut that shit out! Jeez, do ya gotta flip out so damn bad?" snapped the misty figure.

A small voice in Pike told her that this thing wasn't going to harm her, and she used this thought to calm her nerves just enough to stay still and think sensibly. Her wits and calm returned quickly after that.

"W-what are you?" Pike asked as firmly as she could.

"What do ya think I am, idiot? I'm the spirit of your blade! Your Light Cutlass."

"Right. Like I would've guessed that."

"Kids these days," sighed the spirit. "They ain't different enough from kids back in my day, sadly."

"Ok...so you're the spirit of my Light Cutlass...? You're a ghost?"

"If ya wanna get technical, than yeah, I guess you could call me a ghost."

Pike squinted, studying the misty apparition.

"Do all ghosts look like you?" she asked.

"Oh, this mist-look? Call it a default appearance for a ghost. It's about time I use my true appearance now, ain't it?" With those words, the ghost began to focus until she looked so human Pike nearly forgot she was dead.

The spirit was a very pretty young woman, tall with dark-tanned skin. She had hair so light a blonde that it almost looked white, and it was short, going to a few inches below her chin. She was dressed in a pink one-piece outfit that ended just far enough to cover her breasts. The outfit covered her feet, where it seemed to have built-in high heels. There was gold embroidery that circled the breasts and went down the outfit, where it disappeared once it hit the groin area. There were flaps of the pink material on each hip. It was, admittedly, rather scanty. In Pike's opinion, anyway... But something odd was the fact that she looked...familiar.

"Oh, so you really were human..." Pike murmured, mostly to herself.

"Well, DUH. What didja think I was? By definition of 'ghost', I technically was someone who was alive once and died, right? Right," scoffed the spirit of the Light Cutlass.

Pike's interesting was piqued. However scanty the outfit may have been, it still gave the impression that this woman had done battle during her time. And after all, if she was the spirit of her blade, then that was just more to back up that theory, right?

"Umm...do you have a name?" questioned Pike.

The spirit nodded.

"Yep. Missy. Last name's Dek."

"So...you're the spirit of the Light Cutlass..."

"Jeez. An' ta think I thought you were a smart one. How many times do I gotta spell this out for ya, kid! I'm a ghost, as in, person who ain't no longer alive. I'm the spirit of your blade. An', if your brain can handle any more information, that makes me somethin' of a guardian spirit to you," explained Missy.

"What exactly is the spirit of the blade?"

"A long time ago, hundreds o' years ago, back when I was your age, me an' some other kids got ourselves into a mess much similar to yours. Seein' as me an' those others have been watchin' over this place even after death, our first major quest is the one written about in that bible thing of yours...y'know, the one about the Six Tools of the Gods. In fact, I even know the guy who wrote that Prohpecy o' yours."

Missy had Pike's full attention by that time.

Missy went on, "I was one of those Six. That Light Cutlass...I made it."

Now Pike knew where she had seen Missy! In the basement of Oceana's castle, there were the pictures of the Six and the Seventh. Missy was in the picture, only it depicted her as she was at Pike's age. The Missy standing before Pike was an adult, dead or not.

Pike gently picked up the Light Cutlass.

"Wow...you made this...!"

"Yep, and I'd say I did a pretty good job, too. After my death, my spirit was enclosed in the cutlass, though I could and can still watch all that goes on in Oceana. Obviously, the other Six and the Seventh are dead too, but the same goes for them. They lie dormant in their respected God Tools, awaiting the new wielders of the weapons they made.

I guess, judgin' by the Prophecy, that six and seven are still very important numbers in such a perilous time. Ya gotta find the other five, not to mention find out who your Seventh is. Six may seem to be the number of fighters you'll need to defeat Majora, but you ain't gettin' anywhere without lucky Seven," explained Missy.

"Waaaaiiiit...you're losing me."

"Are ya that stupid, bitch!"

Pike cringed. She wasn't stupid. It just seemed that Missy kept repeating herself, and it was all getting jumbled together...

"Ya need five other people in order to become the new Sacred Six! Not ta mention y'all also need a Seventh."

"Why don't we just call it the Sacred Seven then?"

"BECAUSE THE SEVENTH IS DIFFERENT FROM THE SIX. THE SIX DO MOST OF THE DIRTY WORK, DAMMIT. THE SEVENTH IS LIKE THE LEADER, AND IS SAID TO ALWAYS BE THE ONE TO DELIVER THE KILLING BLOW TO THE ENEMY! History is repeatin' itself! Ya can't mess up at all on this journey, or everyone's doomed. Do ya wanna be doomed?"

"Um, no."

"Then listen and stop actin' dumb! I know you ain't dumb, princess.

It's important to find out who the other Six Tools will belong to, and who gets the Seventh. You gotta unite yourself with these people. Always remember that team work is important -- I once took that for granted.

Well, yer kinda pissin' me off, so I'm gonna get back in the cutlass now. I'll be watchin' though, and I'll be helpin' ya even though most of the time ya won't see me." And with that, Missy burst into tiny sparkles that descened upon the Light Cutlass in Pike's hands.

"Wait! C-come back!" Pike cried.

No answer.

When the sparks were all gone, Pike sat back to think about the even that had just taken place. She had learned so many things she had never know before, while she had once thought she knew all there was to know.

Princess Pike was jolted from her thoughts at the sound of footsteps, heard clearly, of course, echoing on the marble floor. She gripped the Light Cutlass in a battle-ready fashion, and rose to her feet, rigid.

"Who's there!"

A cloaked figure cautiously stepped out from behind a pillar. Whoever it was was considerably shorter than Pike, and did not appear to be armed or wanting to hurt Pike, but you just couldn't trust anyone.

"Name yourself," demanded Pike loudly, pointing her blade at the figure.

"I-it's only me..." said the cloaked figure in a female voice most familiar. Small, delicate, pale hands pulled down the hood of the cloak, revealing the already-known newcomer. Before her stood a smaller girl her age with pale, pale blonde curls, very fair skin, and big silver eyes.

"Oh...!" Pike gasped, trying to match name to face. She knew this girl fairly well, but what was the name...?

The girl sighed, and answered Pike's un-asked questions in a quiet voice, as though afraid of being caught.

"It's me...Bambi," she said.

"Bambi!" Pike hurried over to her.

Bambi! That was her name. The best friend of Pike's sister who had played as Tetra's decoy, sacrificing herself to Majora in place of Tetra. Pike had left the party too soon to see what had happened, but was later solemnly informed by Link and Tetra that she had either been killed or kidnapped, for she had not been found anywhere in the ruins of the party. So now, it seemed she was alive.

"Where have you been! We all thought you were dead or something...!" exclaimed Pike.

Bambi shook her head.

"No. After you left the party, I was kidnapped by Majora's followers. It didn't take them long to figure out I wasn't the real Zelda, but they spared my life. I've been kept as a slave since then."

Pike studied Bambi's appearance. She was much skinnier. Paler, too. Her pretty face had a dark purple bruise on one side that also became a black eye.

"Oh my...well..." Pike faltered, not knowing what to say. Then it hit her.

"Bambi, come away with me! It's not safe for you!"

Bambi looked down and shook her head. Sorrow darkened her delicate features.

"No... I can't leave with you, not yet. Majora has a tight leash on me. If I were to escape, they could easily bring me back; they know how to find me. It's been said by them that I give off an aura, probably because I have the Triforce of Power, and with that, they can find me. I have to make my visit here short... But I'm happy I saw you near that tower, because you need to be warned.

Majora has assigned the different parts of Oceana to various members of his following. He alone is in the north, the sorcerers Vaati and Agahnim are in the east, Dark and Shadow are in the west, and two gerudos, Ganondorf and Ciara, rule the south. Majora is desperate to find you and Tetra...so be careful, because he's finding ways to strengthen his forces like you wouldn't believe. For now, I am in the western territory, which is how I spotted you, but I warn you: never, NEVER come to find me."

A thought struck Pike after she quickly absorbed all the information. Had Bambi seen the spirit?

"How much did you see of what I was doing?" asked Pike.

"I saw you come here, and then I saw the ghost.

But I was also wondering, why are you alone, Pike? Where are Link, Tetra, and Aryll?"

"Aryll? I have no idea. But...Link, Tetra, and I...we got separated." Pike sighed.

Bambi looked frightened.

"Well, don't let it stay that way! Link, as far as I know, was already found by Dark and Shadow. And you must find Tetra. Majora needs you and her for extracting the Light Force. And if you find Aryll, please take care of her!" she pleaded, and then turned and started running away.

"Wait! Where are you going!" Pike cried, following her.

"I can't stay any longer than it took to tell you that! It's too dangerous for me and for you! Leave this place immediately, or you're bound to be found! Remember my warnings, and remember what that ghost told you!" Bambi said over her shoulder.

"Wait...!" Pike said in a faltering voice. But she slowed and stopped, watching as Bambi left her sight.

_"It's important to find out who the other Six Tools will belong to, and who gets the Seventh. You gotta unite yourself with these people. Always remember that team work is important -- I once took that for granted," _Missy had said.

Pike couldn't help but feel she had let someone important slip through her fingers.

* * *

A banging on the door. All morning Tetra had waited nervously, dreading the moment when that noise would come to let her know it was time to do what needed to be done. 

Reluctantly, Tetra rose from a chair in the room she had been given to by the zoras, and jerked open the door. Dalit stood before her, but he squeaked, covered his eyes, and turned bright pink in the face when he saw that Tetra was wearing nothing but underwear. Just...underwear.

"What's wrong?" Tetra asked. Then she looked down at herself.

"Is it that I'm pretty much naked? What's wrong with that, I mean, most of you zoras walk around naked all the time."

"I, well, uh..." Dalit nodded, but didn't take his hands from his eyes.

"Oh, fine. I'll get dressed," sighed Tetra. "Sorry."

"I-it's ok..."

It didn't take Tetra long to get fully clothed.

"You can look now, Dalit."

Dalit removed his webbed hands from his face, let out a little puff of air as a sign of relief, and straightened his posture.

"My father, King Aquarius, and Queen Kendra have ordered me to escort you to the location of the monster Gyorg," said Dalit with a proud, stern authority, though his eyes were quite soft when he gazed at Tetra.

Tetra cursed under her breath as she picked up her dagger. She wondered, how exactly was she to kill a giant fish monster with a dagger?

"Well, I think this is a crazy idea. All I have is a dagger. Do you zoras have any weapons I could borrow?" she asked.

Dalit looked down sheepishly.

"Well, you see..." he said, "We zoras are a peaceful race. We don't use weapons -- only magic, and only when nessecary."

"Well, do you have any magic then?"

"Only zoras can use zora magic..."

"Fuck."

Her life already flashing before her eyes, Tetra allowed herself to be escorted to the home of Gyorg.

"I can't believe I'm gonna get eaten by a monster for the sake of fish eggs..." grumbled Tetra as the pair trudged along.

Dalit looked slightly offended, but then understanding.

"I won't let you die. I'll do all I can to help you, Tetra. Our problem may not seem so important to a human princess like yourself, but what you intend to do for us really means a lot to me and all the other zoras, the king and queen especially," he said with a smile.

Tetra smiled weakly. For a fish dude, Dalit was really very sweet.

At last, Tetra and Dalit reached the lake. It was a heinous sight -- dark, murky, and stinky.

Dalit looked sad.

"It was once so beautiful. It started dirtying the moment Agahnim put Gyorg there," he said wistfully.

Tetra stood staring at the ugly water for a moment, thinking. This monster...would it be like Odalwa? There seemed to be room to hope that it was one of those Termina monsters. If that was so, then there would probably be another maiden! And that, of course, was another big step in completing the mission. And maybe that maiden could reunite her with Link and company!

Filled with new hope and confidence, Tetra stiffened up boldly, clutched her dagger, and shouted, "COME ON, YOU DAMN FISH THING! SHOW YOURSELF!"

"Tetra...!" squeaked Dalit in alarm.

But it was too late -- apparently, Gyorg had good ears (as far as fish creatures go, I suppose), and answered Tetra's call quickly. Dalit and Tetra watched as something massive, spiked, and red rose to the surface. It's wild green eyes focused angrily on Tetra; its long, sharp teeth parted to open a mouth filled with many more.

Tetra went pale as she gaped at the huge monster only inches from her face...and only inches from swallowing her whole.


	12. Author's Note

**_Hello, all -- it's me. Good lord, I am soooo sorry about the lack of updates for this story... Total writer's block, you see. My energy for now has been put into the making of Love and Iniquity, summer vacation, and a few audio performances that will soon be making their premiere online. It's been so long since I updated this story, and let me just say, I feel down right guilty about it. I just want to let you know that it will be updated again in due time, but I can't make any promises as to when, and I'm not going to make myself disappoint people with a crappy chapter with no thought behind it. Until I can compose something decent for The Sister, it will be on a hiatus as short as I can possibly make it. I will keep writing, but I will be doing new things such as oneshots and poetry perhaps, and I will definately be working on Love and Iniquity. But The Sister will make it's comeback, I assure you._**

_**Thanks!**_

_Melissa_


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